Abbeville falls to St. Martinville

  The Abbeville Wildcats lost to the St. Martinville Tigers on Senior Night Friday, 21-8.
Abbeville (0-9, 0-2) stayed in the game using a bend but don’t break defense, stopping the Tigers twice on downs inside the six-yard line.  But they couldn’t get out of their way offensively as they turned the ball over four times, including a fumble that was recovered in the end zone for St. Martinville’s first score.
Wildcats’ head coach Jonathan Zenon sees improvement in his young team.  He felt they started slow and had some miscommunication, but that’s part of the rebuilding process.
“We started too slow,” Zenon explained.  “We picked it up at the end of the game, but that’s too slow.  We had some misunderstandings tonight - the line went right, the running back went left.  We have to clean that up.
 “A lot of people want us to be great.  We’re a young team, rebuilding and getting better.  We’re improving each and every day.  These guys are going to be great in the near future.”
St. Martinville turned an Abbeville fumble at midfield into first and goal from the six midway through the first quarter.  The Wildcats’ defense rose, stopping the Tigers on four consecutive downs.
Abbeville fumbled the first snap of the ensuing drive, and the ball squirted back into the end zone where St. Martinville recovered for the touchdown.  The extra point made it 7-0 with 5:01 to play in the opening frame.
That score stood until late in the third quarter when St. Martinville quarterback Khyrie Francisco scored from 11 yards out to make it 14-0 with 2:11 to play.
Francisco struck again in the fourth quarter when he found the end zone from four yards out to put the Tigers up 21-0 with 4:09 to play in the game.
The Abbeville offense quickly marched down the field.  Quarterback Kobe Vital connected with Jacolby Campbell for 15 yards before taking it himself for 24 yards down to the one-yard line.  
Jordan Montgomery plunged across the goal line to put Abbeville on the board.  The two-point conversion made it 21-8 with 1:28 remaining.
The Wildcats made it enjoyable, recovering the ensuing kickoff at the St. Martinville 27-yard line.  With 30 seconds remaining, St. Martinville intercepted a pass to seal the win.
Montgomery led the AHS rushing attack with 36 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries.  Vital finished with 34 yards on three carries.  
Vital is connected to five different receivers for 60 yards through the air. Braylon Himel had a 20-yard reception, while Campbell had one for 15.  Ja’Zavion Briggs had one catch for one yard.
Abbeville closes the season on Friday when it travels to Erath to face the Bobcats (