DES MOINES – Top-seeded Grand View University came up with a last-second defensive stand to keep No. 5-seeded Benedictine Football from a potential game-tying score to hang on for a 17-10 win on Saturday in the Semifinals of the NAIA Football Championship Series.
Benedictine came up with a defensive stop after Grand View attempted a fake punt deep in their own end of the field inside the final 4 minutes of the game. The Ravens took over possession of the ball at the Grand View 17 yard line and ran 7 plays to get the ball down inside the 5 yard line where the Vikings came up with a pair of deflections to keep the Ravens out of the end zone to seal the win.
It was the defense that led to Benedictine's first score of the game. After Isaiah Hasten picked up Grand View's Jackson Waring at the Benedictine 18-yard line, the Ravens were able to covert the interception into a touchdown drive that was capped off by a 4-yard rushing touchdown from Xavier Ugorji. The Ravens took the ball 82 yards on 13 plays and on a drive that took just over 7 minutes.
Grand View finally scored its first points on the game with 10:37 left in the second quarter on a rushing touchdown of their own. That touchdown was followed by field goals from both teams to send the game into halftime tied at 10. Christian Klobe converted a 30-yard field goal with just over three minutes left before the half to give Benedictine back the lead before Grand View converted its on 31-yard field goal with 16 seconds left to tie the game.
The Vikings broke the tie with just over one minute left in the third quarter on an 8-yard pass from Waring and that proved to be the only points of the second half.
Benedictine finished with 248 total yards on offense with 146 yards rushing and 102 yards passing. Ugorji finished with 64 yards off 22 carries while Dalton Witherspoon added 47 yards. Jackson Dooley finished with 102 yards on 11 of 22 passing while Joseph Lagafuaina was the leading receiver with 46 yards on 3 receptions.
Defensively, Abram Phillips and Blake Casteel finished with 8 tackles each while Phillips recorded with one tackle for a loss. Hasten added a fumble recovery to go along with his interception. With the interception, he moved into a tie for the program record for single-season interceptions with 9. Christian McAfee was credited with the forced fumble that Hasten recovered.
Benedictine finishes the season with an overall record of 12-2, qualifying for the NAIA FCS Semifinals for the second straight year after earning the second outright Heart South title under head coach Joel Osborn.
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