Defending national champion Kentucky and Ohio River neighbor Bowling Green will meet to decide the Division I-AA national championship after winning semifinals Saturday at Penn State - Berks. The Wildcats defeated UMass, 39-17, while Bowling Green needed all 80 minutes to best Virginia Tech, 20-18.
In the first semifinal, Kentucky opened with an early Jack Phillips penalty for a 3-0 lead. UMass’ first score also came off a penalty, as inside center David Manoukian scored a couple of phases after a five-meter lineout thanks to a Wildcat miscue. The Minutemen added another in short order, taking a 10-3 lead after the opening 20 minutes.
Kentucky methodically worked back into the game, scoring its first try through a series of pick-and-goes. Phillips’s conversion tied the game at 10-10. Inside center Johnny Dardis snatched the lead for Kentucky just before halftime, picking off a UMass pass and taking it all the way.
UMass took a major blow with a yellow card early in the second half for repeated infringements in the breakdown, and Kentucky extended the lead when prop Richard Donlon barreled over after a couple of phases off a quick-tap penalty from 10 meters out – 22-10, Kentucky.
Joe Keough added one more for UK, slicing through the UMass defense after a big carry from Michael Punzalan. Brother Luke Keough added the assist, making the pass that put Joe into space. The floodgates were opened at that point, with two more Wildcat tries establishing a 39-10 lead before the Minutemen scored again.
The latter game teetered back and forth with every other score constituting a lead change. Virginia Tech played most of the offense in the opening 10 minutes, getting on the board first when a Bowling Green tackler was penalized for not rolling away. Fullback Chris Corin lined up a shot at goal, with the ball careening off the crossbar and over to give the Hokies a 3-0 lead after 11 minutes.
Bowling Green finally played some offense shortly after the kickoff, with two VT penalties giving them an attacking five-meter lineout. The Hokies held strong in defense, turning the ball over, but failed to clear their lines. Shortly thereafter, Falcon No. 8 Phil Tracey carried the ball twice in three phases off of a five-meter scrum, scoring the first try of the game and giving Bowling Green the lead after a touchline conversion from inside center Joseph Apel.
Virginia Tech regained the lead in the 31st minute when inside center Gavin Lockwood took a short ball at pace and swerved around the Falcon backline for the first Hokie try. This time, Corin’s conversion doinked off the upright, leaving VT up, 8-7.
BGSU took the advantage back three minutes into the second half on the heels of a Tracey quick tap in the attacking end. The big carry from the No. 8 created enough space for wing Gary Brammer to sneak in the corner.
Wing Lucas Bichy swung the seesaw back in Tech’s favor with a try at 46 minutes. The Hokies turned the Falcons over at the ruck deep in their own end, and Bichy scorched the touchline a phase later. Both conversions were missed, leaving Virginia Tech up, 13-12.
Bowling Green counterpunched in the 56th minute, with wing Owen Slimmer catching a backhand offload from fullback Joe Romshe and squirting in the corner for a try to put the Falcons up, 17-13, nearing the hour mark.
Tech appeared destined to go ahead in the 70th minute, but the crash ball on a five-meter penalty was knocked straight into Bowling Green’s hands. With the Falcons pounding on the door in the other direction, VT flyhalf Cooper Anderson swooped in, picked off a skip pass and ran 80 meters untouched for the try. The conversion was again missed, and the Hokies led, 18-17.
Bowling Green opted for a lineout off of a Virginia Tech penalty in the 80th minute, but Falcon forwards ran from support and were turned over 10 meters from pay dirt. The Hokies immediately dove over in the ensuing ruck, directly in front of the posts, gifting Apel a point-blank shot at goal to deliver the Falcon win.
The Wildcats and Falcons will meet at 2 p.m. CT Saturday, December 14 at SaberCats Stadium in Houston, TX.
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