VILLE PLATTE – The second annual Ville Platte High Dodge, Jeep and Chrysler Invitational Tournament got underway here Wednesday afternoon with seven boys and seven girls teams vying for the championship.
The tournament was scheduled to run through yesterday, with the finals set for 3 and 4:30 p.m. The Gazette will have coverage of Friday and Saturday’s games in Thursday’s edition.
Here is a rundown of the games that were played on Wednesday and Thursday.
Pine Prairie (G)
vs. North Central
In the opening contest, the Pine Prairie Lady Panthers tried to make a second half comeback, but could not finish in a 46-37 loss to the North Central Lady Hurricanes.
Pine Prairie did not come out strong offensively and found themselves down 17-9 as the first quarter came to a close.
The second quarter was harsher for the Lady Panthers, as North Central turned up the head defensively and extended their lead to 34-13 as the first half came to a close.
The Lady Hurricanes opened up a 41-17 lead midway through the third quarter, but Pine Prairie was able to make a small run toward the end of the period to cut the lead down to 42-26 before the horn sounded.
The Lady Panthers outscored North Central 11-4 in the final quarter, but ran out of time to continue the comeback.
Ville Platte (G)
vs. LaGrange
The Ville Platte Lady Bulldogs took on the Class 4A LaGrange Lady Gators in game two Wednesday afternoon hoping to pick up their inaugural win of the season. Unfortunately for the Lady Bulldogs, LaGrange was too much to handle, as Ville Platte fell 78-29.
The first quarter was a big indicator of how the game would go, as the Lady Bulldogs found themselves in a 15-6 hole when the buzzer sounded.
The Lady Gators continued to open things up in the second quarter, extending their lead to 32-15 heading into the locker room.
LaGrange opened up an even bigger lead in the third quarter outscoring Ville Platte 28-9. The final period saw the Lady Bulldogs only put up five total points.
Beau Chene (B)
vs. North Central
A classic St. Landry Parish match-up in game three on Wednesday saw the Beau Chene Gators squeak out a 66-64 win over the North Central Hurricanes.
The first half belonged to the Hurricanes, as they were able to open up a 19-15 lead after one quarter of play and a 36-28 lead going into the locker room.
However, the Gators owned the second half, putting up 20 points in the third quarter and 18 points in the final period to get the win.
Ville Platte (G)
vs. Pine Prairie
Thursday afternoon, the Ville Platte Lady Bulldogs took on the Pine Prairie Lady Panthers in the first elimination game of the tournament. This game came down to the wire, with Ville Platte slipping past Pine Prairie 52-50.
The first quarter showed two evenly matched teams, as both squads were tied at 5-5 with 2:35 left to go. Ville Platte was able to gain a slight advantage, outpacing Pine Prairie 7-3 to end the period.
The Lady Bulldogs took control of the game in the second quarter, out shooting the Lady Panthers on their way to a 27-19 half time lead.
Things went Ville Platte’s way in the third quarter, with the Lady Bulldogs adding to their lead by outscoring the Lady Panthers 16-9.
Pine Prairie crawled back into the game in the final quarter by gaining a 19-9 advantage. However, it was not enough to overcome Ville Platte in the end.
Northwest (G)
vs. Beau Chene
Game two on Thursday turned out to be a route, as the Northwest Lady Raiders plundered the Beau Chene Lady Gators 59-17.
Mamou (B)
vs. North Central
The first elimination game for the boys saw the Mamou Demons hold off the North Central Hurricanes 62-59.
The game started slow with North Central taking a 6-5 lead after one quarter. When the first half buzzer sounded, the Demons trailed 26-23.
But, a 39-33 advantage in the final two quarters allowed Mamou to advance on into the weekend.