Sweet Victory

Phyllis Richert photo<p>No. 8 Tabor prevails over No. 9 Doane in NAIA playoff opener<p>Tabor College head coach Mike Gardner (with stocking cap and sunglasses) addresses his team following the Bluejays? 16-14 victory over Doane (Neb.) College in the first round of the NAIA Football Championship Series played Saturday at Joel H. Wiens Stadium. The game marked the first opportunity Tabor has had to host an NAIA football playoff game. With the win, the Bluejays (11-1) will travel to top-ranked Morningside (Iowa) (11-1) for a quarterfinal matchup Saturday, Nov. 28.

In a battle between two stout defensive teams, 8th-ranked Tabor College defeated visiting 9th-ranked Doane, 16-14, Saturday in the first round of the NAIA Football Championship Series.

It was the first time Tabor has ever hosted a playoff game in Hillsboro.

Both teams entered the game ranked among the top five in scoring defense per game: Tabor at No. 3 (13.1 points) and Doane at No. 5 (16). Both teams also ranked among the top 10 in rushing defense per game: Doane at No. 3 (92.5) and Tabor at No. 7 (99.9).Bluejay quarterback Simon McKee waves his ?Player of the Game? award after throwing for 160 yards and a touchdown in a hard-fought defensive battle.

?Defensively, Doane?s as good as anybody we?ve played this year,? coach Mike Gardner said. ?I can?t say enough about our defense though. Those guys came up time and time and time again. We had some great individual efforts from a lot of different people that played into it. I?m happy for our kids.?

The Bluejays forced six Tiger turnovers, including three interceptions and three fumbles.

Tabor also dominated the clock, maintaining possession for more than 40 minutes of action. By halftime, Tabor had amassed nearly 24 minutes of possession, limiting Doane to just 6 minutes.

?Defensively, we couldn?t get off the field in the first half,? Doane coach Matt Franzen said. ?Offensively, we couldn?t get into any rhythm. We just didn?t have a chance to run very many plays.?

In the first quarter, the Bluejay defense was on the field for only five snaps, thanks to a massive Tabor scoring drive that consumed 9:32 of playing time. Doane converted three first downs to Tabor?s 12 in the first half.

After back-to-back punts to start the game, Tabor orchestrated the 18-play, 70-yard drive. The Bluejays were aided by a pass interference penalty on fourth down. Four-plays later, Jared Slavens sent a 22-yard field goal through the uprights to give Tabor a 3-0 lead with 1:01 left in the first quarter.

Two plays into Doane?s ensuing drive, Jonah Guary intercepted a Tiger pass, and the first quarter ended with Tabor in possession holding a 3-0 lead.

Highlighting Tabor?s next scoring drive, Simon McKee completed a pair of passes to Jonah McKee for 18 and 14 yards, respectively. The elder McKee found the end zone on a 1-yard keeper on the eighth-play of the drive. Colten Mach blocked the extra-point kick, giving Tabor a 9-0 lead with 11:28 left in the half.Phyllis Richert Photo<p>James Foote intercepts a Doane pass during the fourth quarter Saturday. Foote?s interception was the first of three interceptions within a 54-second span. Also recording interceptions for Tabor during the game were Jonah Guary and Kareem Greene.

Doane responded by scoring in three plays, capped by a 51-yard touchdown strike that made it 9-7 at the 9:50 mark.

Tabor took 8:08 off the clock on its next possession, which ended when a 30-yard field goal attempt was blocked. The Bluejays maintained their 9-7 margin through halftime.

Neither team scored in the third quarter. With Doane nearing the red zone at the Tabor 26, Wayde Snell forced a fumble and Alex Neuschafer recovered it.

After a Tabor three-and-out, Darius Stallworth blocked a 42-yard Tiger field goal attempt. Dylan Delk recovered a fumble on the first play of Doane?s next drive.

Tabor turned the ball over with an interception after that, and the turnovers continued in the fourth quarter when Greg Benham recovered a Tiger fumble three plays in.

That turnover led to Tabor?s final scoring drive. The Bluejays covered 70 yards in six plays, fueled by a 42-yard pass from McKee to Stallworth. Ryan Arballo hauls in a 28-yard touchdown catch on third-and-20 to extend Tabor?s lead over Doane to 16-7 during the <p>fourth quarter.

Facing third-and-20 after a holding penalty, McKee completed a 28-yard strike to Ryan Arballo in the back of the end zone. Slavens? kick extended Tabor?s lead to 16-7 with 10:50 left in the game.

?That was amazing,? Gardner said of Arballo?s touchdown catch. ?We just let it fly and sometimes you get lucky and make a play.?

Gardner and McKee both said they expected Doane to decline the holding penalty. When the penalty was accepted, McKee said he knew he had a chance to make a play.Janae Rempel / Free Press<p>Simon McKee completes a pass to Jonah McKee during the second quarter of Saturday?s first-round game against Doane. The elder McKee completed 11 of 22 passes for 160 yards and one touchdown in Tabor?s 16-14 victory. McKee was selected Offensive Player of the Game by media members in attendance.

?I was like, ?All right Coach, just give me a chance. I just want a chance. I can make this throw,?? McKee said. ?Sure enough, we called one of our big plays this week and Ryan came through. He made the catch.?

The next 54 seconds of play saw three consecutive interceptions, recorded by Tabor?s James Foote and Kareem Greene and Doane?s Tyler Chapa.

Doane pieced together its final scoring drive with 3:14 left in the game. The Tigers covered 74 yards in seven plays and capped the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run, closing the gap to 16-14 with 1:43 to play.

Tabor narrowly secured the onside kick and was then able to run out the clock.

Tabor rolled up 249 yards of offense, including 160 passing yards and 89 rushing yards. D?Marco Smith led the Bluejays? ground game with 21 carries for 74 yards. Through the air, McKee was 11-for-22 for 160 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Stallworth hauled in one catch for 42 yards. Torrey Gill had four receptions for 39 yards.

McKee was named Offensive Player of the Game. He said it was good to participate in a playoff game after being sidelined by injury the past two seasons.

?I?ve waited two years sitting out watching these playoff games the last couple years, so it felt good to get out there and participate in it,? he said, adding that having a home game was an added bonus. ?Getting to play in front of our home crowd, (there?s) nothing better than that.?

Doane recorded 303 yards of offense, including 217 passing yards and 86 rushing yards.

Defensively, Mach led Doane with 14 tackles and was named Defensive Player of the Game. Neuschafer led Tabor?s effort with eight.

After the game, Delk spoke about Tabor?s lockdown effort on defense.

?We knew if we played assignment football on defense that they weren?t going to move the ball too well,? he said. ?They had that one big play in the first half where they scored, but other than that, our defense really shut them down. It was awesome.?

Coming?Tabor (11-1) will travel to top-ranked Morningside (Iowa) (11-1) for a quarterfinal matchup Saturday, Nov. 28. Morningside comes into the game after defeating Saint Xavier, 75-69, in quadruple overtime. Kickoff is set for noon.

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