Church Point crushes North Vermilion

LEROY – Seth Patin’s 31-yard field goal with 8:16 left in the first quarter gave the North Vermilion Patriots an early 3-0 lead and  a glimmer of hope Friday in their game against the state-ranked Church Point Bears.
Less than a minute later, both were gone.
The Bears, ranked No. 8  in the Class AAA polls, responded with six unanswered touchdowns over the next 40 minutes to erase the lead, dash the Pats’ hopes and pull away for a 41-3 victory.
Christian Veronie, who rushed for 137 yards on the night,  got the Bears going with a 27-yard touchdown scamper with 7:44 remaining in the first quarter.
Church Point’s defense then got in on the action near the end of the quarter when Anthony Thibodeaux picked off a pass and returned it 25 yards for a score.
And Bears’ quarterback Troy Matte hit pay dirt from one yard out in the second quarter to push the lead to 20-3 at the half.
The Bears added to their cushion in the third quarter when Matte hit Frederick Williams on a 68-yard scoring strike. He then connected with John Wyatt Treme for a 6-yard touchdwon.
Tyler Wheeler added the finishing touches with a 4-yard touchdown run late in the third.
The Bears rushed for 396 yards on the night. Donavon Gallow followed Veronie with 76 yards on three carries while Wheeler had five carries for 55 yards. Deion Monroe added 49 yards on 11 carries.
Matte was 3-for-6 through the air for 81 yards and two touchdowns. He hit Williams once for 68 yards, Monroe once for seven yards and Treme once for six yards.
The Bears defense limited North Vermilion to just 140 yards of total offense and forced three turnovers - two interceptions and one fumble.
Church Point will be in action again on Friday when they play host to Pine Prairie in the District 5-3A opener for both teams.