Carroll in title game after close call

HELENA – John Camino rushed for 220 yards and four touchdowns Saturday and Carroll College held on for a 38-37 win over Lindenwood in the semifinals of the NAIA football playoffs.

No. 7 Lindenwood (11-2), playing in its first semifinal, stopped Carroll on a fourth-and-goal from the 1 with 4:02 remaining. The Lions drove 99 yards and scored on a 4-yard pass from Ben Kisner to Rudy Fleming to pull within 38-37 with 38 seconds left.

Lindenwood’s two-point conversion failed when Kisner’s pass bounced off the back of Carroll defender Cody Lamb, sending the Saints to the NAIA championship game for the sixth time in seven years.

The top-ranked Saints, who have won five national titles in the past six years, meet Sioux Falls on Dec. 20 in Rome, Ga., in a rematch of last year’s title game which the Saints won 17-9.

Kisner passed for 223 yards and three touchdowns for Lindenwood, which trailed 38-17 with 5:20 left in the third quarter.