McMINNVILLE, Ore. – Jaren Roste threw for three touchdowns and ran for one more, and Anthony Hockett picked off two passes in the end zone, vaulting No. 20 Bethel past fifth-ranked Linfield in a second round NCAA Division III playoff game Saturday afternoon at chilly Maxwell Field.
Bethel held Linfield scoreless in the second half on the way to a 30-13 upset of the favored Wildcats in what was the first-ever meeting on the football field for the two schools.
Bethel (10-2) advances to face Mary Hardin-Baylor next Saturday in the regional finals at a site to be confirmed Sunday by the NCAA.
Linfield (10-1), champion of the Northwest Conference, saw its season come to an abrupt close. The loss was the Wildcats' first defeat on their home field in the month of November since 2014.
Roste completed 19 of 24 passes for 214 yards and three scores. He also ran 24 yards and scored one touchdown.
Royal receiver Joey Kidder had five receptions for 107 yards and three touchdowns and tailback David Geebli rushed for 96 yards on 20 carries to keep the Wildcats off balance throughout the contest.
Wildcats quarterback
Blake Eaton passed for 161 yards but was held without a touchdown pass for the first time this season. Harassed all afternoon by the aggressive Royals front, the sophomore pivot from Central Point was sacked six times and was picked off twice in the end zone by Hockett.
Colton Smith caught six passes for 43 yards,
Joel Valadez had five receptions, and
Devon Murray and
Franco Keplinger each accounted for three catches to lead the Wildcats.
Connor McNabb rushed 17 times for 93 yards.
Linfield opened the scoring with a 34-yard field goal by
Gavin Dalziel on its first drive, taking a quick 3-0 lead.
The Royals answered with an impressive 16-play, 70-yard march, capped by Kidder's 5-yard touchdown reception from Roste with 2:02 left in the first quarter.
A promising Linfield drive stalled at the Bethel 32-yard line when linebacker Jacob Homen sacked Eaton, leaving
Gavin Dalziel to drill a 49-yard field goal that cut the Bethel advantage to 7-6.
Nic Jones returned the ensuing kickoff 54 yards into Linfield territory, giving Bethel excellent field position to start the drive. Two Geebli runs put the ball at the Linfield 2, where Roste polished off the drive with a sneak through the middle of the line.
The Wildcats used a trick play to draw to within one, 14-13. Valadez swept right, then lobbed the ball 11 yards to a wide-open Murray, putting the finishing touches on an 8-play, 75-yard drive midway through the second quarter.
Later in the period, Judson Williams forced an Eaton fumble and Thomas Wurdemann recovered at the Linfield 24. But the Linfield defense held firm, forcing the Royals to settle for Hugo Cifuentes' 24-yard field goal with 1:53 left in the half, making the score 17-13.
Despite several quality opportunities, the Wildcats were held scoreless in the second half.
Kidder pulled in his second TD of the afternoon with 4:15 left in the third quarter to give Bethel its largest lead to that point, 24-13. Roste lofted an 11-yard pass to the 6-foot-3 sophomore, who pulled in the ball along the left boundary of the end zone.
Linfield marched to the Bethel 5 to begin the fourth quarter, but Eaton was intercepted by Hockett on a third-and-goal play, thwarting a key Wildcat drive.
The backbreaker came shortly thereafter. Kidder pulled in another Roste pass along the right sideline, then shook off a Wildcat defender at midfield and sprinted untouched the remaining distance to the end zone. The extra point failed, but it mattered little as the Royals held a 30-13 advantage with 10:37 left to play.
Trailing by three scores and with time becoming a factor, the Wildcats again drove deep into the red zone, only to come away empty handed. On first-and-goal from the 6, Hockett picked off Eaton in the back of the end zone, effectively sealing the game in the visitors' favor.
Defensively, Linfield was led by linebacker
Blake Rybar, who piled up nine tackles, including one for loss.
Caiden Biege-Wetherbee added seven tackles, two for loss, and
Colby Kalaukoa contributed six stops.
Devin Williams and Nate Farm both accounted for 11 tackles to spearhead the Bethel defense, which held the Wildcats to a season-low 261 total yards.
CAT SCRATCH
Saturday's attendance was 1,566 . . . temperature at kickoff was 42 degrees. . . Linfield converted just 4 of 11 third-down opportunities. . .
Maclain Stoneking piled up 120 yards on six kickoff returns. . . Stoneking, who did not return a single punt in the game, came within three yards of setting the Linfield single-game record for punt return yardage. . . Bethel won the turnover battle, 3-0, marking the first time all season that Linfield did not force a single turnover. . . the loss was just the eighth playoff defeat ever for Linfield at Maxwell Field in the playoffs.
