In their 28-18 victory in McMinnville on Saturday, Mary Hardin-Baylor’s opportunistic defense caused three turnovers, ending Linfield’s journey through the NCAA Division III football playoffs.
The Wildcats’ nine-game winning streak came to an end with the third-round playoff loss. Blake Eaton tossed for 220 yards and Luke McNabb ran for 99 yards and a touchdown for Linfield (10-2).
Asa Osbourn ran for 102 yards and a touchdown, and safety De Marrion Morris intercepted two passes in the fourth quarter, advancing Mary Hardin-Baylor (8-3) to the quarterfinals.
Mary Hardin-Baylor was limited to 289 yards by Linfield, but the Wildcats were ultimately defeated by mistakes and a rapid touchdown surge in the second quarter.
Four minutes into the match, Gavin Dalziel’s 29-yard field goal gave Linfield a 3-0 advantage. However, Cru made a big-play and scored two touchdowns in a three-minute period in the second quarter, giving the team a 14-3 advantage. The first play of the second quarter saw Kamerin Ferguson run 51 yards for a score. A few minutes later, Jake Wright passed 18 yards to Ranius Daromola for a touchdown, and Mary Hardin-Baylor capitalized on a punt turnover.
Early in the third quarter, Osbourn raced 68 yards for a score, putting the Cru ahead 21-3. Five seconds into the fourth quarter, Linfield replied with two touchdowns, and McNabb’s four-yard run for a touchdown brought the score within 21-18.
After Morris picked off Eaton and went 71 yards to the Linfield 9, the Wildcats failed to score despite driving into the red zone with six minutes remaining. Wright nearly ended the game with a touchdown run of seven yards two plays later.
The contact information for Nick Daschel is 360-607-4824, [email protected], or @nickdaschel.
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