The defense rose to the occasion.
With less than two minutes left on the clock and holding on to a two-point lead, No. 22 Kinder was looking to pull off the first-round upset over No. 11 St. Helena College and Career Academy but needed the defense to make one final big play.
That’s exactly what happened as Yellow Jacket defensive back Jaron Johnson hauled in the interception. The offense took the field, picked up a first down and ran out the clock for a 22-20 victory.
“Our defense has struggled all season long and they came up with some big stops to help us win this game,” Kinder coach Bret Fuselier said. “We forced two fumbles in the game and also Jaron had the interception to seal it. We had a couple of times where they turned the ball over on downs to us. It was just a good total team effort on defense.”
Kinder will now host No. 6 Amite Friday in the second round of the Class 2A playoffs.
“We are looking forward to playing a home game in the second round of the playoffs, especially with all the adversity this team has faced this year,” Fuselier said. “Our team has earned the right to host this game in Kinder.”
Kinder (5-6) struck first in the opening quarter with a seven-yard touchdown run by Donte Botley but the extra point was no good.
Taking that early lead on the road was key for the Yellow Jackets.
“Considering the environment we were in and the young team we are, it was important to give our kids that confidence,” Fuselier said. “That was the game plan going in and that was to try and jump on them early and gain that confidence.”
St. Helena took the lead in the second with a 32-yard touchdown by Corey Griffin and then the extra point by Camron Wheeler was good.
Kinder responded shortly before halftime with a 43-yard touchdown run by Graham Fawcett. The Yellow Jackets went for two and Griffin Cooley’s run was good.
“It was important because we knew they were getting the ball in the second half,” Fuselier said. “So it was important for us to get that momentum right before half.”
That momentum was needed.
After Kinder’s defense forced a turnover on downs to start the third, St. Helena scored later in the third as Javont Dunn hauled in a 32-yard pass from Griffen.
Kinder’s offense began a key drive towards the end of the third quarter which ended in the fourth, but not before a good chunk of time had elapsed off of the clock.
Cooley scored on a seven-yard run and Ben Fontenot caught the two-point pass in the back of the end zone to give Kinder a 22-14 lead.
“We were able to milk the clock to get that score going into the fourth,” Fuselier said. “The two-point conversion was big.”
St. Helena didn’t quietly go away as they scored a one-yard touchdown run by Griffen.
St. Helena opted to go for two to tie the game but the two-point pass failed.
“Their quarterback spread to his right and threw an incompletion similar to what we saw in the quarterfinal game versus Loreauville last year,” Fuselier said. “It was the same type of play – sprint right.”
Kinder would give the ball back one final time but the Yellow Jacket defense came up with the game-sealing win as Johnson picked off the pass.
Kinder now turns its attention to Amite, who defeated Delhi Charter 48-0 in the opening round.
“They are what Amite always is, they have size, they are athletic, they have speed and they are well coached,” Fuselier said. “They have a lot of tradition over there. Their kids are used to winning in the playoffs but so are we.”
