Dominant defense leads Alexandria to shutout over Lafayette Christian

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ALEXANDRIA – Don’t tell Josh Mercer that the Alexandria Trojans didn’t play well on Friday night.

The Trojans’ defensive coordinator was extremely pleased with how his unit performed in a dominating 45-0 victory over Lafayette Christian Friday night.

Alexandria allowed just 25 passing yards, gave up only three first downs in the first half, and made two key takeaways that helped overcome some sloppy offensive play by the Trojans, who rolled to their third straight victory and set up a key road trip next week against former District 2-5A rival Neville.

Junior tailback Noble Williams turned in his second straight 20o-yard rushing performance, while senior quarterback Karsen Sellers passed for multiple touchdowns for the third straight game as the Trojans shook off some shaky first-half possessions to roll up 434 yards of offense.

But the story of the game was written by the Trojan defense, which pitched its first shutout of the season. The Trojans forced three first-half turnovers, including a fumble recovery by junior defensive end Carter Rivet and an acrobatic, one-handed interception by senior free safety Ja’Kyrin Griffin.

The biggest play of the game, however, was made by junior nickel back Raymond Harris III.

With the Trojan offense stymied, coming off a third straight possession that ended in either a turnover or three-and-out, Lafayette Christian (2-1) looked poised for its first offensive breakthrough.

Junior running back Kyzer White broke two tackles and was headed toward the end zone with just over two minutes left in the first half, but Harris tracked him down from behind and forced a fumble near the 10-yard line. Griffin recovered the ball in the end zone, keeping the Knights off the scoreboard and sparking the Trojans’ stagnant offense.

“We had a chance to go 2-for-1, which is what we always try to do right before half,” LCA coach Matt Standiford said, “and unfortunately for us, their kid made a heck of a play chasing him down instead of quitting on the play. That’s what championship teams do.”

Instead of a 17-7 game, Alexandria scored on its final two possessions of the half to take a commanding 31-0 lead into the halftime break.

“When Ray punched the ball out, that changed everything,” junior linebacker Amarian Simon said. “That changed the flow of the game.”
“It was beautiful,” Williams said of the Trojans’ defensive performance. “They played almost perfect. They had some mistakes, but the effort (was there). When Raymond punched out the ball, that got me really fired up. Coach Mercer has done a very good job, and I’ve got to give them the credit.”

The Trojans scored on each of their first three drives with Williams finding the end zone from 11 yards out for the first of his three touchdowns and Sellers connecting with senior Reginald “Donut” Monroe for 46 yards. Senior kicker Eli Fung’s 23-yard field goal gave the Trojans a 17-0 lead, and they looked ready to run away with the game.

But LCA’s defense stiffened, even as the Knights’ offense struggled to move the chains and sustain drives. LCA used three different quarterbacks who combined to go 6-for-25 for just 25 passing yards in the game.

White, who started the game at running back for the Knights and played most of the second half at quarterback, was the lone bright spot for the LCA offense, rushing 24 times for 128 yards.

After Harris and Griffin combined for Alexandria’s third takeaway of the first half, Williams found the end zone for a second time on an 8-yard run before Sellers hit senior tight end Gaines McKenzie for an 11-yard touchdown and the 31-0 lead.

The Trojans added two more rushing touchdowns in the second half. Junior Kason Williams, who has been battling a leg injury and played limited snaps the past two weeks, took his only touch of the game for a 25-yard TD before Noble Williams finished the scoring with the offensive play of the night.

Facing 1st-and-35 after multiple penalties, Noble Williams took a handoff from Sellers and accelerated off the right side of the line. He ran through two tackles 20 yards downfield and then raced untouched the rest of the way for a 65-yard TD on his final carry of the game, finishing with a season-high 208 yards on 22 carries.

But the story of the night was the play of the Trojans’ defense, which was led by Simon’s 10 tackles and a sack along with Griffin’s two forced turnovers. Senior Mississippi State commitment Jaden Bayonne finished with eight tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss, and Harris added eight stops.