Sam Riddle (So., Hillsboro, Ore.) threw five touchdown passes and Alex Hoff (Jr., Lebanon, Ore.) had a hand in five sacks as Linfield dominated previously unbeaten Widener (Pa.) 45-7 in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III playoffs Saturday afternoon at soggy Leslie C. Quick Jr. Stadium.
Linfield (11-1) returns to the national semifinals for the first time since 2009 to face defending champion UW-Whitewater, a 37-33 winner over previously unbeaten Wartburg (Iowa).
Steady rain, often heavy, daunted both teams throughout the contest. Widener turned the ball over three times in the first quarter alone, providing the visiting Wildcats with early momentum.
Widener, champion of the Middle Atlantic Conference, ended its season at 12-1. The Pride entered the game leading Division III in rushing defense (61.3 yards per game) yet surrendered 148 yards on the ground to the surging Wildcats, who rolled up 409 yards to Widener's 173.
Riddle kept Widener on its heels, passing for 261 yards while completing 18 of 36 throws with just one interception. He finished as Linfield's leading rusher, gaining 75 yards on 14 carries.
The Wildcats capitalized on a pair of early interceptions to vault to a 14-0 advantage during the game's first six minutes.
Kennedy Johnson (So., Gresham, Ore.) picked off Seth Klein's pass at the WU 11-yard line. Three plays later, Riddle connected with Spencer Payne (So., McMinnville, Ore.) coming out of the backfield for Linfield's initial points. The extra point by Michael Metter (So., Portland, Ore.) put Linfield in front 7-0 with 11:19 to play in the opening quarter.
Keanu Yamamoto (Jr., Waikoloa, Hawaii) set up Linfield's next score, intercepting Klein at midfield and Riddle wasted no time in padding the Wildcats' lead. After running the ball twice for 28 yards, Riddle found Evan Peterson (Sr., Bellevue, Wash.) for the first of his two touchdowns, this one a 22-yard lob into the end zone.
Widener closed the gap to 14-7, turning a Riddle interception into points of its own. Klein marched the Pride 33 yards in eight plays, capping the drive with Terrant Morrison two-yard plunge.
It was Riddle who sprung Payne free with a key block on a third-down reverse play and the sophomore quarterback then threw deep down the right sideline to Charlie Poppen (Sr., Oregon City, Ore.). The 44-yard touchdown gave the visitors needed breathing room.
With 3½ minutes left before intermission, Widener advanced to the Linfield 27, but Klein was sacked on fourth down by Hoff, who finished with a team-high nine tackles, five of them sacks. Riddle then guided the Wildcats to their fourth touchdown of the half, leaving 52 seconds on the game clock. Peterson reeled in his second touchdown of the half, a five-yard fade pattern over the outstretched arms of Pride cornerback Jamal Goodman.
Once the defenses made their customary halftime adjustments, both offenses spun their wheels through a scoreless third quarter.
Linfield slammed the door on Widener in the fourth quarter, outscoring the hosts 17-0. The Wildcats scored on Metter's 44-yard field goal, Riddle's 40-yard TD pass to Colin Nelson(Sr., Redmond, Wash.), and a 9-yard run by backup quarterback Matt Yarbrough (Sr., Tualatin, Ore.) in the span of 6½ minutes to salt the game away.
Hoff had plenty of support on the defensive side of the ball. Jordan Giza (Sr., Salem, Ore.) made seven tackles, along with Yamamoto. Linebacker Mike Nardoni (Sr., Palos Verdes, Calif.) was credited with five tackles to go along with a 38-yard interception return. Linfield's defense rendered Widener helpless on third down as the Pride went 2-for-18 in that department.
Linfield controlled the ball for 20 of the game's final 30 minutes, preventing Widener from mounting any sort of sustained comeback.
Poppen, Payne and Peterson all had five receptions. Poppen ended the afternoon with a game-high 112 receiving yards.
'CAT SCRATCH: Riddle's five touchdown passes raised his season total to 33, moving him into a tie for No. 4 on Linfield's single-season list. . . Saturday's game marked Linfield's 30th NCAA playoff game over 15 seasons. . . Widener entered the game with a perfect 7-0 record NCAA playoff games. . . the Pride entered the game averaging 39.8 points per game but were held to just seven by the Wildcats. . . . Poppen became just the sixth receiver in Linfield history to surpass 1,000 receiving yards in one season. . . the senior now has 1,027 yards. . . Linfield reached the 11-win plateau for the third straight year . . . the Wildcats have a penchant for winning national titles in even-numbered years, capturing NAIA titles in 1982, '84, and '86, plus and NCAA crown in 2004. . . the Wildcats return to Oregon via charter jet Saturday night.
Linfield dominates Widener 45-7
/seasons/2014/boxscores/20141206_kcs2.xml
2014
Dec 06, 2014