BAY ST. LOUIS &045; St. Stanislaus senior Josh Duplessis muscled out 151 yards rushing and scored two touchdowns to lead the Rockachaws to a 20-12 victory over the Wilkinson County Wildcats on Friday night.

St. Stanislaus fought off a large and physical Wildcats squad in extremely muggy, hot conditions. Duplessis, soaking wet and dead tired, exited the field as he talked about the heat.

&uot;Our coaches have worked us hard and stressed water,&uot; Duplessis said, &uot;but even with all of that it was a real battle out there physically.&uot;

SSC coach Casey Wittman agreed.

&uot;The conditions were difficult,&uot; he said. &uot;We put a lot of emphasis on conducting this week and keeping the players hydrated, but there is only so much one can do. The fact that Wilkinson County was so big and physical presented a real challenge to our kids right out of the gate.&uot;

The Wildcats used their brand of smashmouth football with 225-pound tailback Leroyal Lanus. Wilkinson County opened with a 58-yard drive that saw Lanus score from 3 yards out to give the Wildcats a 6-0 advantage.

SSC’s rifle-armed senior quaterback, Lance Cuevas, answered with a 53-yard touchdown strike to Duplessis on the sidelines with 1:36 to go in the first.

Bryce Morreale added the conversion, and the Rocks led 7-6.

The Wildcats’ David Dawson took the lead back when he found Jalentrick Turner for a 28-yard touchdown pass, the conversion failed and Wilkinson County led 12-7.

Duplessis scored his second touchdown when he galloped for a 5-yard touchdown run with 2:37 to go in the first half for a 13-12 lead.

Jefferson County 25, Amite 0

FAYETTE &045; The Tigers’ defense logged a donut and picked up two safeties in the process to down the Trojans in their season opener.

The defense picked up the slack for an offense that got three scores but struggled at times with turnovers. Alonzo Quinn also intercepted two passes.

&uot;Defense was the high point,&uot; Jefferson head coach Jeffrey Harness said. &uot;They created a lot of turnovers. We moved the ball pretty well on offense, but we turned the ball over too many times.&uot;

The Tigers got in first when Anthony Williams ran in one for a score. Jimmy Shorter followed that with another touchdown. Isaac Wallace later found Joseph Kemp in the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown pass.