Leads Tors to third straight win with three TDs

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SULPHUR — Sulphur’s ground game had a coming out party for homecoming Friday night at Matt Walker Memorial Stadium.

Seniors Sean Ceasar and Branden Walker and sophomore Devon Harris combined for 258 yards and six touchdowns to lead Sulphur to a 42-7 win over LaGrange.

“They (the Gators) play a lot of man-to-man and left a lot of creases open that our running backs were able to find,” Sulphur head coach Jeff Wainwright said. “They did a good job of controlling the game.

“I am just proud we got out of here with a victory tonight.”

Ceasar rushed for three touchdowns and 78 yards in the first half. He finished with 103 yards on 15 carries.

Harris did all of his damage in the second half with 16 carries for 110 yards and one touchdown and Walker scored twice in the third quarter and rushed for 45 yards on five carries.

Since refocusing on its ground game, Sulphur (4-3, 3-1) has won three straight after losing three in a row in which it averaged 69 rushing yards a game.

“It is always good to win,” Wainwright said. “When you are losing, you have to find what is working and what is not working and move all that stuff around.

“It is three big wins a row for us and we just have to keep working on the little things to make us hard to beat.”

Ceasar gained 25 yards on five carries on the Tors’ first drive and capped it off with a 4-yard run with 1:11 left in the first quarter. Most of Ceasar’s yards were gained running through the heart of the Gators defense. He added pair of touchdowns in the second quarter on runs of 9 and 2 yards.

Walker scored on runs of 22 and 5-yard in the third quarter and Harris scored on a 46-yard run in the fourth quarter.

The Gators gained 169 yards in the first half but failed to find the end zone. LaGrange was without the services of starting running by Anthony Johnson, who was injured last week against Sam Houston.

LaGrange (0-7, 0-4) started the game with a promising 66-yard, 10-play drive, gaining big chunks of real estate on several plays. Quarterback Quintorious Jones had a 16-yard run and Malik Ellis had a 17-yard run on second-and-10, but the drive stalled at the Tors’ 12-yard line with 7:30 left in the quarter.

“All year we have not been finishing drives,” LaGrange head coach Maricco Wilson said. “That is what has been hurting us all year.

“That is probably one of the best drives we have had this year. We talk about moving the sticks and we got four first downs on that first drive. All year we have just been stalling out.”

Wilson said he believes his team can finish the season on a positive note.

“My guys didn’t quit,” Wilson said. “We have a few kinks that we need to get out and I think we can finish the season on a good note.

“If we can do what we are supposed to do, we will be fine.”

LaGrange reached Sulphur’s side of the field two more times in the first half. On first-and-10 from the Tors’ 31-yard line, but the Gators were intercepted in the end zone by Tors linebacker Macky Leblanc in the closing seconds of the first half.

LaGrange avoided a second consecutive shutout when Jones threw a 61-yard bomb to Jalen Dobson with 2:47 left in the third quarter. Dobson caught three passes for 133 yards and Jones completed 9 of 13 passes for 150 yards but was intercepted twice.

Sulphur senior quarterback Morgan Clark set a school record with a pass to tight end Bode Barlow in the third quarter. Clark has 4,242 career passing yards. Southeastern Louisiana quarterback Byron Walker (2014-2016) owned the previous record of 4,239. Clark also owns the school career passing touchdown record (43). He completed 9 of 19 passes for 133 yards.

SULPHUR 42

LAGRANGE 7