Three Republic offensive drives ended inside the Union 10-yard line, and that was enough to doom the Tigers’ chance for an upset in a 28-6 first-round playoff loss at Union.
After falling behind 28-6 in the first half, Republic seemed ready to score again as the clock ran down. But Union picked off a Republic pass in the end zone to end the drive.
A scoreless third quarter ended in similar fashion. The Tigers fumbled the ball inside the Union 10, just when it seemed they were about to score. The Tigers were stopped on downs inside the 10-yard-line on another drive early in the 4th quarter.
Union’s offense moved the ball at will early in the game. They racked up 449 yards of total offense — 237 in the air, and 212 on the ground. The Wildcats jumped out to a 21-0 lead before Republic scored its only touchdown on a 27-yard run by Jake Laswell midway through the 2nd quarter. But Union seized back the momentum with another quick touchdown, extending its lead to 28-6, and that’s where the score remained.
Jake Laswell had 174 rushing yards on 31 carries to lead the Tigers. James Desjardins had 15 carries for 60 yards.
Republic ends its season at 4-7, while Union improves to 11-0. The Wildcats will play Hillcrest in the next round of the playoffs.
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