DESTREHAN — Destrehan lost its starting quarterback early and still beat district rival East St. John for the second time this season, rolling to a 34-6 win Friday night in the first round of the Division I Non-Select playoffs.
The Wildcats went up 10-0 on their first two drives: a 22-yard Ian Arceneaux field goal and a 1-yard touchdown run by Malachi Dabney. On the next series, quarterback Au’shai Smith took several hard hits on a run and left with a bruised hip. The offense stalled for the rest of the half with backup Denham Ellsworth under center.
Things changed after halftime. Ellsworth led three touchdown drives, finishing 9 of 11 for 101 yards. He also threw a 9-yard scoring pass to Jaylen Ash. Dabney, a Nicholls commit, carried 21 times for 165 yards and two touchdowns. Tony Crump Jr. added a 31-yard touchdown run, and Arceneaux closed the scoring with a 41-yard field goal.
East St. John got its only points on a 3-yard Stanford Jenkins run late in the third quarter, set up by a 64-yard pass from Damon Scott. That still beat the Week 5 meeting, when Destrehan shut out East St. John.
Destrehan improves to 9-2 and will host Haughton in the second round. East St. John finishes 3-8.
