Hannan’s strong second half push too much for Independence

RABENSTEINER ACCOUNTS FOR 285 YARDS AND TWO TOUCHDOWNS

HAMMOND, La. – It was only a matter of time.

With many of the Independence Tigers’ players playing both ways on a hot Saturday afternoon at Strawberry Field, the Archbishop Hannan Hawks bided their time.

After going into the half holding a slim 13-12 lead, the Hawks exploded in the second half en-route to a comfortable 41-20 win against the Class 2A Tigers.

Hannan coach Scott Wattigny said before the game one of the goals for his team was to play a clean game and he was happy with the way his team responded by committing only three penalties and turning the ball over once.

“We did what we needed to do and hopefully we can build on this and keep plugging away,” Wattigny said.

The Hawks’ rushing attack was relentless, finishing with 310 rushing yards in the contest.

Hannan (1-0) was led by senior quarterback Chris Rabesteiner, who finished with 197 yards on the ground to go with his 88 passing yards. Rabensteiner accounted for two touchdowns, included an 85-yard touchdown romp to open the scoring.

“He’s the dude. It’s not a secret. He’s our guy,” Wattigny said. “He makes everything easier. We’ve got a lot of playmakers on the team, but when he gets going everyone else gets going.

“He filled in last year, but this was his first true game as the starting quarterback and he was great.”

Junior Brendan David, junior Dawson Millen and senior Nick Hughes chipped in as well, combining for 30 carries, 121 yards and four touchdowns. David had two touchdown runs, while Millen and Hughes both picked up a touchdown.

Two Independence fumbles, one recovered by Isreal Carrera and the other by Zachary Easterling, broke the Tigers’ back in the second half as the defense started to wear down.

Independence (0-1) appeared noticeably winded late in the third quarter and into the fourth as several players went down with cramps under the hot September sun.

“We don’t dress out a lot of people, but we truly have an offensive side and a defensive side,” Wattigny said. “I took it upon myself to identify players and keep them in those spots and it has been an advantage.

“It was a hot day and a turf field and I thought our kids handled adversity extremely well.”

Hannan scored touchdowns on four of their six, second half drives.

The Hawks will go on the road next week to take on Central Catholic of Morgan City, while Independence will travel to Albany.

Hannan Team

Rushing Yards – 310

Passing Yards – 88

Total Yards – 398

Attempts – 11

Completions – 5

INT – 0

Fumbles – 2

Lost – 1

Punts – 2 for 57

Average – 28.5

First Downs 17

Penalties 3-35

Hannan Individual

Chris Rabensteiner:

5-for-8, 88 passing yards 1 passing touchdown

17 rushing attempts 197 yards 2 rushing touchdowns

Seth Callouet:

2 receptions for 24 yards

Brandan David:

20 attempts for 98 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns

Daniel Labourdette:

1 reception for 29 yards and 1 touchdown

Jacob Gaude:

2 catches for 35 yards

Independence Team

Rushing – 212

Passing 102

Total – 314

Attempts – 13

Completions – 8

INT – 0

Fumbles – 3

Lost – 2

Punts 3-66

Average – 22

First downs: 10

Independence Individual (Don’t have names, just numbers)

Anthony McClain:

20 attempts for 120 rushing yards and 1 touchdown

Stephan Jackson:

6 attempts for 82 rushing yards and 1 touchdown

7 catches for 101 yards and 1 touchdown

De’angelo Gaines:

8-for-14 with 102 passing yards and 1 touchdown