WESTVILLE, OKLA. -- Both offenses operated at a fast pace, yet the outcome was decided by defense as Lincoln (1-0) defeated border rival Westville, Okla. (0-2), 18-7, Friday.
Sterling Morphis' fourth quarter interception of Westville's Cameron McCollum, who took over the quarterback duties in the second half, set up Braden Umberson's 22-yard touchdown reception that sealed the victory for Lincoln with 58 seconds left in the game.
The Yellowjackets got a third-down stop by Kevin Woods, whose tackle set up a fourth-and-10 situation. Lincoln quarterback Caleb Lloyd then lofted the football high to Umberson, who beat a double-team of Dagan Hembree and Felix Factor by outleaping them to come down with the catch. The "Malachi Crunch" failed to separate him from the ball and Umberson hung on for the touchdown.
Westville got into trouble on the game's opening series when Factor, who started at quarterback, had a shotgun snap go over his head on third and five. The play lost 18 yards, then repeated on fourth down when the Yellowjackets attempted to punt. They avoided a block and safety, but the desperation kick from the goal line only reached their 33. Five plays later, Lloyd scored on a quarterback sneak to put the Wolves in front 6-0 with 2:29 gone in the first quarter.
Another miscue on a punt snap hurt Westville in the second quarter and led to Lincoln's second touchdown. A shanked punt traveled from the Yellowjacket 19 to their 45. Lincoln took over and handed off to senior Jacob Anderson, who twice bounced off hits running off left tackle. He stayed on his feet and scampered for a touchdown at the 5:18 mark of the second period. Westville intercepted a pass on the 2-point conversion attempt and Lincoln settled for a 12-0 lead, which they held at the half.
Hembree was held to 51 yards on 12 rushes in the first half, but Westville got him going to start the third. A fake punt backfired on Lincoln when a pass fell incomplete at the Wolves' 37. Westville capitalized on the short field. They converted a fourth-and-five with McCollum passing to Factor for 18 yards to the Lincoln 14. Hembree capped the 8-play drive with a 2-yard touchdown run. The P.A.T. trimmed Lincoln's lead to 12-7 with 7:43 to go in the third.
Umberson came away with his second interception of the game to halt a Yellowjacket threat near midfield. The teams then exchanged punts before a bad snap led to a Lincoln shanked punt. Westville took over on downs at the Lincoln 46, but couldn't convert a fourth down either. Lincoln then drove to the Yellowjacket 8 where Hembree intercepted a pass on fourth down. He ran the ball out to the Westville 32, but four plays later Morphis picked off McCollum's pass.
Next week Lincoln faces Keys, Okla. in the first game to be played on the new artificial turf at Wolfpack Stadium. The school is hosting a tailgate party at 5 p.m. with a dedication ceremony to be held at halfime. A postgame fireworks display will conclude the festivities.
Sports on 09/06/2017