Desales Edges Republic In Semis Two Touchdowns In Final 1:14 Secure Win For Irish And A Spot In Gridiron Classic Ii

Republic played for the win Saturday and lost.

DeSales played for the tie and won.

Sophomore quarterback Brian Lindgren threw five touchdown passes, including two in the final 1:14, to rally DeSales (11-1) to a 35-28 win over Republic in a State B-11 semifinal at cold, rainy Albi Stadium.

Lindgren’s final TD pass, a 31-yarder to Allen Stanley with 11 seconds left, took the lead away from the Tigers (11-1) for the first time.

DeSales, the 1991 state champion, will play for another title Saturday against Willapa Valley (12-0) in Gridiron Classic II at the Tacoma Dome.

The Irish never counted on getting a chance to win outright Saturday. After Lindgren’s 6-yard TD to James Wolford with 1:14 to go, the Irish expected extra minutes.

“We were thinking overtime,” Lindgren said. “I was surprised we got the ball back.”

Republic, aggressive all day, tried to move downfield in the final 1:11 rather than run the clock. Instead, two Jason Baldwin passes hit the ground and a third-down sack lost 2 yards to the Tigers 33.

Republic called timeout facing a fourth-and-12 with 48 seconds left. Mark Rickard’s 25-yard punt and Joe Levens’ 8-yard return placed the ball at midfield with 39 seconds left.

Lindgren threw two incompletions before hooking up with Matt Heinzman on a 19-yarder over the middle. On the next play, Stanley beat defensive back Danny Hanks for the winner.

“I was running a post route to the (right) corner and (Lindgren) threw a great ball,” Stanley said. “I bobbled it a couple of times, got the ball on my facemask, then caught it.”

“I pump-faked to the tight end (Heinzman) in the middle and the safety bit,” Lindgren said.

Lindgren finished 21 of 38 for 329 yards and two interceptions. His 48 TD passes are four short of the state season record set by DeSales’ Pat Graham during the championship season.

Lindgren hasn’t played football for two years because of a neck injury.

Republic coach Don Beazizo thought a heavy rush might rattle the young QB.

“Putting extra pressure on him, I don’t know now if that’s the answer,” Beazizo said.

Republic scored every quarter, yet DeSales answered every Tigers TD with a score.

Two killers for Republic: It failed to convert a fourth-and-2 at the DeSales 4 near halftime, then came up short on a fourth-and-1 at the Irish 2 with 9:43 left.

“I didn’t think field goals would win it,” Beazizo said. “Our philosophy was to punch it into the end zone.”

The Tigers exploited DeSales’ three-man front for 255 rushing yards, including 117 on 20 carries by senior Aaron Moores.

Baldwin connected on 15 of 30 passes for 164 yards and one TD. He also threw two interception to Levens after being picked off just five times this year. Baldwin finished his career with 352 completions, 10th all-time in the state; 6,126 yards, sixth all-time; and 73 TDs, fifth all-time.

Tigers senior Mark Rickard had six receptions for 58 yards. He’s the state’s all-time leader in both categories (190 for 3,888). Rickard also intercepted Lindgren in the second quarter, tying state records for most pickoffs in a season (14) and career (33).

Levens foiled Republic all day, with nine catches for 172 yards and the team’s first three TDs.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: MOVING ON DeSales, Willapa Valley play Saturday for B-11 title.