Courtesy of Midland Athletics
FREMONT, Neb. — The Doane Tigers defeated the Midland University Warriors 19-18 in Great Plains Athletic Conference football action Saturday afternoon at Heedum Field. Doane scored a touchdown in the final minute of play, then executed a 2-point conversion to take the lead. A potential school-record 56-yard field goal attempt by Midland’s Payton Alexander fell just short on the final play of the game, as the Tigers held on for the victory.
Midland (2-3, 2-2 GPAC) received the opening kickoff. On the third play from scrimmage, quarterback Zach Congalton rushed for a 37-yard gain to the Tiger 16. Three plays later, the drive stalled and Alexander kicked a 31-yard field goal to put the Warriors in front 3-0 with 11:56 remaining in the first quarter.
Doane (1-3, 1-3 GPAC) moved the ball on its opening drive. On the fourth play from scrimmage, quarterback Sam Hartman connected with Andrew Waido on a 25-yard pass completion to the Midland 29. Three plays later, the Tigers faced third down, and the Warrior defense recorded two consecutive sacks. After a Matthew Flores sack, Zach Dickeydropped Hartman for a 15-yard loss on fourth down, giving Midland the ball at its own 45.
Four plays later, Midland quarterback Brodey Johnson completed a pass to Brodie Anderson for 35 yards and a first down at the Doane 3. Three plays later, Tyson Denkertleaped over the pile for a 1-yard touchdown. Alexander’s extra point put Midland ahead 10-0 with 3:46 left in the opening quarter.
On the ensuing kickoff, Doane’s Blake Allen returned the ball 41 yards to the Tiger 44. However, the Midland defense forced a three-and-out, and the Warriors got the ball back after a Tiger punt.
Midland struggled on the next drive and faced third-and-19 at its own 10. Congalton completed a pass to Jayden Shakir for 12 yards, but Midland was forced to punt on the final play of the first quarter.
After another Doane three-and-out, Midland got the ball back at its own 12 following a punt. On the second play, Johnson completed a 22-yard pass to Tim Brown for a first down. Brown fumbled, but a targeting penalty on Doane allowed Midland to retain possession. The Warriors could not capitalize, however, and were forced to punt.
On the next series, after an 18-yard completion to Mark Anderson, the Tigers fumbled and Midland recovered at its own 39.
The Warriors went backwards on the next drive and were forced to punt. On the snap, the ball sailed through the back of the end zone for a safety, cutting Midland’s lead to 10-2 with 9:03 remaining in the first half.
The Tigers responded with a score. Allen returned the free kick 10 yards to the Tiger 47. Three plays later, on third down, Hartman completed a 28-yard pass to John DeRiso for a first down at the Midland 25. On the next play, Hartman connected with Waido for a 25-yard touchdown. The 2-point attempt failed, and Midland led 10-8 with 7:32 remaining in the second quarter.
Midland’s offense sputtered on the next drive, going three-and-out.
Doane converted a third-and-6 when Hartman rushed for 19 yards to the Tiger 47. On the next play, Chandler Page carried for 10 yards to the Midland 43. Doane ran seven more plays but turned it over on downs at the Midland 31. Eli Boryca pressured Hartman into an incompletion, giving Midland the ball.
On the next possession, Congalton rushed for 13 yards to the Midland 44. Two plays later, he was intercepted by JaKarion Jackson, who returned it to the Warrior 47. Doane ran three plays before the half expired, and Midland held a 10-8 lead at the break.
Doane received the second-half kickoff but went three-and-out. On the punt attempt, Dickey blocked the kick and Midland took over at the Tiger 26.
The Warriors’ offense stalled, and Alexander attempted a 38-yard field goal, but Doane’s Nick Laban Farah blocked it.
Facing third-and-11, Hartman completed a 15-yard pass to DeRiso at the Doane 34. Three plays later, Hartman connected with Mark Anderson on a 33-yard pass to the Midland 28. On the next play, Hartman hit DeRiso for 12 yards to the Warrior 16. The drive stalled, and Ivar de Jong kicked a 19-yard field goal to put Doane ahead 11-10 with 6:14 left in the third quarter.
On the next drive, Congalton completed a third-down pass to Brown for 15 yards to the Doane 48, but the Warriors stalled and punted.
Doane picked up one first down before Midland’s Beau LaCroix sacked Hartman on third-and-long, forcing a punt. The quarter ended with Doane still leading 11-10.
Early in the fourth, after a false start, Johnson was sacked for a 5-yard loss back to the Warrior 3. Midland punted two plays later.
On the next drive, Hartman was intercepted by Dickey, giving the Warriors the ball at their own 27.
Midland responded. On second down, Congalton completed a 16-yard pass to Denkert to the Warrior 43. Four plays later, facing third-and-3, Congalton was sacked for a 5-yard loss. On fourth down, Congalton hit Tae Marks for 35 yards to the Doane 4. Three plays later, he connected with Colin Vigil for a 4-yard touchdown. The 2-point conversion from Congalton to Shakir made it 18-11 Midland with 7:51 remaining.
Doane began its final drive at its own 20 with 1:54 left and no timeouts. Hartman connected with Anderson for 11 yards to the 31, then with Waido for 16 yards to the 47, and again for 19 yards to the Midland 34. After four more plays, Doane had the ball at the Warrior 19 with 31 seconds left.
On the next play, Hartman hit DeRiso for a touchdown. Midland was flagged for roughing the passer, and Doane accepted the penalty to move closer for a 2-point attempt. Hartman rushed in from just outside the 1-yard line to put Doane ahead 19-18 with 24 seconds left.
Midland got the ball back, and Congalton completed an 11-yard pass to Marks at the Doane 39 with two seconds left. Alexander’s 56-yard field goal attempt fell just short, sealing Doane’s win.
Doane ran 77 plays for 377 yards. Midland had 62 plays for 270. Doane finished 24-of-46 passing for 299 yards. Midland went 13-of-23 for 164. On the ground, Doane had 31 carries for 78 yards, while Midland rushed 39 times for 106.
Hartman led Doane, completing 24-of-46 passes for 299 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Waido caught 10 passes for 129 yards and a score, while DeRiso hauled in five passes for 82 yards and a touchdown.
For Midland, Congalton went 9-of-17 for 104 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Denkert carried 25 times for 64 yards and one touchdown. Marks had three catches for 42 yards, while Vigil had one catch for a 4-yard touchdown.
Defensively, Doane was led by Reece Zutavern with 14 tackles. Jarrett Boggs had 11 tackles and half a sack. Simdorn recorded eight tackles and one sack. Jackson added an interception.
For Midland, Brandon Lance and Boryca each had eight tackles. Boryca also recovered a fumble. LaCroix had five tackles and one sack. Flores-Ortiz had four tackles, half a sack, and a fumble recovery. Albertini Tenor had two tackles and 1.5 sacks. Dickey recorded one sack, one interception, and a blocked punt.
Head coach Jeff Jamrog spoke after the game.
“I’m really disappointed in how we played. We had our chances. Defensively, it was disappointing. You worry about it, you talk about it. They came in 0-3. It’s a rivalry game. They came in here. Give them credit.”
Dickey also addressed the loss.
“There were some good things, but unfortunately today, the bad outweighed the good. Now we need to work hard over the next two weeks to get ready to play a good Concordia team on the road. I have complete faith in our team, and we just need to work on our mistakes.”
Midland has a bye this week before returning to action Saturday, Oct. 11, at Concordia. Kickoff at Bulldog Stadium in Seward, Nebraska, is set for 1 p.m.
