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The Cougars have clinched a playoff berth.

Lafayette Christian put a 56-16 whooping on Young Americans Christian on Friday for an important region victory.

“It is a good feeling because we worried that if we didn’t win this game we would have to beat Sherwood to get in or have to hope we get in on the wild card thing they are doing this year,” LCS coach Jarred Pike said.

It was a complete and total team performance from the Cougars.

“We came out here and played a four quarter game,” LCS coach Jarred Pike said. “Other than a fumble, which you can’t really complain about because it has been raining all day, it was a clean game from us.”

It was not the start the Cougars wanted when the Eagles took the first play from scrimmage 65 yards into the end zone and converted a two-point try to take 8-0. 

“I told them to just do their job,” Pike said. “We just needed to set the edges and let the linebackers go and fill a gap. It was that simple.

“We just needed to not be selfish and play as a team.” 

The Cougars answered quickly, marching down the field with a methodical drive and finishing it with a touchdown when Ephraim Snyder plunged over the goal line from 11 yards out to trim the deficit 8-6. 

It was a big day for Snyder, who ran for two more touchdowns in the first half. He put the Cougars up 12-8 late in the first and another to put the Cougars up 24-8 with 1:35 left in the first half.

“I love playing in this type of weather,” Snyder said. This is football weather.”

The running game opened up the passing attack which started with a bang when David Karvelas hit a wide open Brandon Devenport down the field for a 29-yard touchdown.

“We were talking about not even throwing the ball at all, but the running game opened up the play action and David even came over to tell me that he could throw it even better in the rain, and I was like ‘whatever David,’” Pike said with a chuckle.

Despite the rain, Karvelas was hitting his receivers on the hands all night.

“The guys were wide open all night, and I think that is because we were running the ball so well,” Karvelas said. “I was a little nervous with the rain, but once I started throwing it around it felt normal.”

He threw three more touchdowns, two to Jonathan Ross and one to Bruno Tellez in the fourth quarter that he made quite the extension for in the pouring rain. When the running and passing games are working in unison, the Cougars are going to be tough.

“If he does his job and I do my job, we are going to be hard to beat,” Snyder said. “This is a team game, and we played like a team tonight.”

After the opening touchdown, the defense locked in and locked down the rest of the way. 

Paul Batastini had a huge interception on the Cougars 5-yard to stop an Eagles drive early in the game. Matthew Latour also had two fumble recoveries, but the biggest defensive play of the game came when Eli Carroll forced a fumble, and Noah Childree picked it up and returned it.

Lafayette Christian (6-1) is heading to its home stretch of the season with a state playoff berth already locked up. The Cougars will travel to Praise Academy next Friday before a critical clash against reigning state champions Sherwood in the regular season finale on Oct 27.

“I’ve been telling them we are on a one way journey towards Sherwood since the beginning of the season,” Pike said.