Mandeville battles its cross-town rival Fontainebleau Bulldogs tonight in the Skippers Homecoming game. MHS (5-0) sits a top the District 6-5A race with an unblemished 3-0 mark. FHS (3-2) is 1-3 in district play having lost its last two ballgames.

Mandeville captured last year’s game 37-7.

The Skippers maintained their early supremacy in district play blanking Ponchatoula 34-0 last week at the Swamp. The Bulldogs came up short last week falling to Covington 20-10 at home.

MHS running back Darrell Adams picks up yardage after being stopped by Ponchatoula'€™s Kaleb Muse in Friday'€™s district game played in Ponchatoula. Tonight the Skippers play their homecoming game against Fontainebleau. (Photo by Mike Kiral/Hammond Daily Star)

Mandeville head coach Guy LeCompte said despite the distraction of homecoming events he has faith in his players to take responsibility for getting prepared. “I trust the maturity and character of our players,” LeCompte said. “They know what is at stake, and have always handled the distractions since I have been here.”

LeCompte said as coaches, his staff does its best to maintain the regular routine.

Coach LeCompte said he was pleased with his club’s turnaround last week by not committing so many penalties. The Skippers were flagged for just four penalties compared to 11 flags the previous week.

“We were finally able to minimize our penalties. We hope that trend continues. We still want to play a mistake free game. The coaches continue to emphasize fundamentals, and execution of the game plan,” LeCompte said.

LeCompte said the great thing about his club is that they are playing together as a team. “We have had balanced stats with a great overall team effort. That is what you like to see as a coach.”

Skippers’ junior quarterback John Wenzel connected on 11-of-16 passes for 182 yards and two touchdowns against Ponchatoula. He also ran the ball eight times for 26 yards including a seven-yard TD on a fourth down play in the second quarter. Senior Brandon Weeden had five receptions for 92 yards with a 22-yard touchdown catch.

Chris Houlemard caught two passes, one for a touchdown and also returned a kickoff 90 yards for a score.

Junior Matt Dombrowski continued to shine in the Skippers’ kicking game, booting two field goals from 29 and 48 yards out. He was also 4-of-4 on PATs. Dombrowski has made 5-of-6 field goal attempts this season, while making all 11 of his point after touchdown tries.

LeCompte said the Skippers’ defense would have to be sharp to stop the Bulldogs’ Wing-T offense.

“The Wing-T can present some challenges for us. Not seeing that type of offense very often, means you only have one week to prepare to stop that offensive scheme. I think their players have adapted to that offensive philosophy. They are more efficient in their execution,” LeCompte added.

Senior free safety Michael Crane, the Skippers’ leading tackler, has recorded 23 individual stops and 15 assists on the season with a forced fumble. Crain was credited with 13 tackles last week’s Ponchatoula victory. Senior linebacker Barret Fritscher also turned in a strong defensive performance against the Green Wave with 13 tackles.

Senior strong safety Austin Storms was in on 12 tackles. He is the second leading tackler with 18 solo stops and 15 assists, and tops the Skippers with three interceptions. Senior linebacker Jeff Rebouche was in on six tackles last week and has 29 tackles for the year.

FHS coach Gregg Hudson said he hopes his defense will be able to at least slow down the Skippers’ effective spread offense.

“Their offense can take you out of a game pretty quick,” Hudson said. “They have a number of weapons on the offensive side of the ball. They execute their spread offense really well, which makes them tough to defend.”

Fontainebleau looks for a way to rebound against a solid Mandeville squad. Bulldogs’ junior quarterback Addison Melancon enters the Mandeville contest, completing 48 percent of his passes, 38-for-78, totaling 576 yards.

He has thrown five touchdowns with five interceptions. Senior fullback Clay Fritscher has been the Bulldogs’ workhorse in the running game, topping FHS with 492 yards on 74 carries, averaging 6.6 yards per rush. Fritscher has five rushing touchdowns. Fritscher gained 95 yards on 14 carries last week against Covington.

Junior Perrin Sims is next with 189 yards on 30 rushes, averaging 6.3 yards per carry.

He has missed some time this season, and has two TDs. Senior Vinnie Tonagel has rushed for 157 yards on 31 carries. He averages 5.1 yards per rush with one touchdown.

Senior end Gerald Gruenig, the anchor of the Bulldogs’ defensive front, registered three solo stops and three assists against CHS.

Gruenig delivered another sack, and tops the Bulldogs with nine. Junior linebacker Kris Rice, FHS’ leading tackler on the season, was also in on six tackles. He has 22 individual tackles with nine assists for the year. Rice has two interceptions, caused three fumbles and recovered a fumble.

Junior Thomas Babin, the Bulldogs’ second leading tackler on the season (26 individual, three assists), registered five individual tackles with one assist. FHS junior defensive lineman Scott Korte registered two solo tackles with seven assists.