Upset Bid Thwarted in Final Minutes
William Penn University Athletics
by Wade Steinlage
Baldwin City, Kan.–While the sports world waited for possibly the most-hyped boxing match in history, fans at Liston Stadium were treated to an incredible undercard bout Saturday afternoon. Unfortunately in the end, the William Penn football team could not knock out the reigning Heart of America Athletic Conference South Division champion Baker in a 31-27 setback.
#23 WPU (0-1) was outgained 387-181, but rallied with 20 fourth-quarter points to take the lead with just over two minutes to go. The second-ranked Wildcats, fresh off a trip to the national title game last December, refused to be taken down on their home turf, and scored in less than one minute and held on for the win.
Things looked ominous early on for the navy and gold as Baker took the opening kickoff and marched right down the field for an early 7-0 lead.
The Statesmen suffered a quick three-and-out to give the ball back, but fortunately the defense stiffened and came up with a takeaway to help the offense catch up.
Mason Wisse (Sr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Physical Education) forced a fumble and recovered the pigskin at the Baker 34-yard line. WPU then went with a heavy dose of Brandon Polito (Sr., St. Louis, Mo., Psychology) (seven rushes) and converted on three fourth-down plays to knot the contest at 7-7 after one quarter of action. Carl Sivels (Sr., Washington, Iowa, Physical Education) eventually broke the plane of the goal line from two yards out on one of those four-down conversions.
The hosts answered with a field goal early in the second stanza, but the defenses stole the show the rest of the period as the Statesmen were down only 10-7 after 30 minutes.
WPU unfortunately did not come out of the locker room swinging as Baker started each of its first two drives in visitor territory. The first possession did not net any points, but the potent Wildcats did not fail twice and pushed the edge to 17-7.
William Penn’s offense continued to sputter with two back-to-back three-and-outs, but the defense came to the rescue yet again. With Baker pushing downfield, Brandon Davis (So., Atlanta, Ga.) picked off a pass at the WPU 20-yard line and darted 57 yards to position the Statesmen to get back into the game.
Three plays later, Eric Cooper (Sr., Aguanga, Calif., Human Services) hooked up with Jeremiah Benson (So., Kansas City, Mo., Physical Education) for a 17-yard passing score and the navy and gold found themselves within three.
Conor McGregor may act crazy, but even he could not match the insanity that was about to ensue in the final period.
William Penn was flying high after the TD, but that intensity ratcheted way up a few plays down the road. The defense made BU punt and Luke Masters (Fr., Branson, Mo., Undecided) became the special teams stud by not only blocking the kick in Wildcat territory, but also picking it up at the six-yard line and running it in for the touchdown to give the Statesmen their first lead of the game at 20-17.
The advantage would not last long, though, as Baker scored two minutes later to recapture the edge at 24-20.
William Penn also refused to back down, going 65 yards on its next drive to get the lead back at 27-24 with 8:33 to go. The biggest play of the game for the Statesmen came on a fourth-and-three at the WPU 42-yard line as Tyler Wood (So., Newton, Iowa, Education) faked a punt and hit Jordan Cousert (Fr., Hammond, Ind., Undecided) for a 30-yard reception and more importantly a first down to keep the drive alive.
Both sides came up empty on their next possessions, but with time on his team’s side, Aaron Allen (Sr., Bolivar, Mo., Secondary Education) booted a stout 54-yard punt that pinned the Wildcats on their own 14-yard line with just over two minutes left in regulation. Allen, who tallied three tackles, was busy all afternoon, punting eight times for an average of 37.9 yards.
Unfortunately, Baker’s air attack was too much to control and the home team took the lead for good on a 61-yard pass play.
The Statesmen, who rely almost entirely on the run, still had over a minute left on the clock, but could not respond with their own passing game and turned the ball over on downs to end the threat.
WPU managed 128 rushing yards, including 43 by Cooper and 32 by Polito. Cooper also finished 2-for-9 passing for 23 yards.
Anthony Jackson (Jr., Detroit, Mich., Physical Education) guided the defense with nine tackles and two sacks of 2016 NAIA Player of the Year Logan Brettell. Rashaad Ollie (Fr., Foley, Ala.) added eight stops, while Wisse and Jake Baptiste (Sr., Salt Lake City, Utah, Psychology) each produced seven tackles. Resean Coleman (So., River Rouge, Mich., Exercise Science) was good for six tackles as well, including three for loss.
“Our players were absolutely fantastic today!” Head Coach Todd Hafner said. “We competed better than we have in a long time. We gave ourselves every opportunity to win the game because of our effort and the way we cared about each other today. We talk all the time about how important it is to play for the person next to you and we executed very well that part of our game plan. We will get in tomorrow and watch the film and find ways to get better.”
Next Up: William Penn travels to Marshall, Mo. next Saturday to face #12 Missouri Valley in a North-South crossover game at 6 p.m.
