District championships might not be celebrated exactly like they once were, but the Ascension Episcopal Blue Gators are going to take a little time to enjoy theirs before opening up postseason play next week.

Ascension Episcopal wrapped up its 2026 regular season schedule with a convincing 42-0 win over the Central Catholic of Morgan City Eagles on Friday night in Youngsville.

The win helped the Blue Gators earn a share of the District 7-A championship in the process, along with Westminster-Lafayette and Jeanerette.

"Ever since that stopped making the district championship mean something, as far as the playoff brackets are concerned, people have kind of shied away from it," Ascension Episcopal coach Jay Domengeaux said. "But it is something to be proud of, and we are very proud of what we accomplished and how we improved as a team throughout the course of the year."

The Blue Gators scored the first points of the game on the first possession of the game when Owen LeBlanc ran in 4-yard touchdown at the 10:15 mark of the first quarter for a quick 7-0 lead.

Ascension Episcopal extended its advantage to 14-0 at the :28 mark of the first quarter, after LeBlanc scored on a 9-yard touchdown run - a lead that would stand until intermission, despite Central Catholic advancing the football inside the Blue Gators' 10 twice in the first half.

"They (Central Catholic) did some really good things early," Domengeaux said. "I thought they played pitch and catch well, and did a couple of things that frustrated us with a couple of talented kids that they have. But, in the red zone, our guys stiffened up a little bit, played tough, and kept them out of the end zone."

As they did in the first half, Ascension Episcopal scored the second half when Eli Gros ran in a 6-yard run at the 7:29 mark of the third quarter to make it 21-0, before later connecting with Jack Boudreaux on a 45-yard scoring strike at the 6:25 mark of the period for a 28-0 cushion.

The Blue Gators never looked back, scoring two more touchdowns to secure the win, and their third consecutive shutout, including their fourth in their last five games.

"Being able to hold three teams scoreless like we have is good for the mentality of our defense," Domengeaux said. "It means our defense believes in themselves, they're playing fast, and they believe in what they are doing, so we're really proud of that."

Ascension Episcopal began the season with an 0-2 record, before winning six of its last seven games, suffering a one-point loss to Westminster-Lafayette as the only setback.

"Our kids really have grown throughout the year," Domengeaux said. "Our guys have worked hard to get better every single week. We've had a number of young guys at key positions that got better week after week, in large part because of our veteran leaders, and I couldn't be more proud of them, and they deserve to call themselves district champions."

With the victory, Ascension Episcopal improved to 6-3 overall and 5-1 in district play, while Central Catholic fell to 4-5 and 2-4, respectively.

The Blue Gators won't have much time to enjoy their share of the district title, however, as they prepare for the first round of the LHSAA Playoffs, scheduled to begin next week.

"We're not sure where we'll be seeded or anything like that, but it's normally pretty consistent, so we should expect to be seeded anywhere from 10 to 12," Domengeaux said. "That means we're not going to be in a bye situation, and we should be hosting next week, but looking at our classification; there's a lot of different scenarios that are going to play out tonight, so we'll find out a lot more tomorrow."

As long as the Blue Gators continue to play at the level the are, they'll have a chance against anyone.