The Lathrop Malemutes held-off a late charge by the Eagle River Wolves to secure a 14-12 victory in the Division II semi-final contest on Saturday afternoon in Fairbanks.
Lathrop advances to play the Soldotna Stars in the ASAA First National Bowl Division II Football Championship Game scheduled for Saturday, October 16th at Service High School.
The championship game will be a rematch of the week two pairing between the Stars and Malemutes which was won by Lathrop 27-22 in Fairbanks; The Stars only loss of the regular season.
Lathrop 14 – Eagle River 12
The Malemutes scored the only touchdown of the first half on an interception return by James Opp of 35 yards, after Eagle River held Lathrop on plays at the Wolves 1-yard line.
Trailing 7-0 midway through the fourth quarter, Eagle River scored on a touchdown run by Cashiez Reaves; however, missed the extra-point PAT kick making the score 7-6 Lathrop. The Wolves held Lathrop on downs at the Lathrop 41, but Eagle River punted to pin the Malemutes inside the 10 yard line. Lathrop managed a long drive capped by a Tyler Clooten 9-yard touchdown run to extend Lathrop’s lead to 14-6 with the PAT.
Eagle River, with 2:12 remaining in regulation, mounted a final drive scoring a 21-yard touchdown pass to Colten Carlson on a fourth and goal from the 21-yard line to bring Eagle River to within two points at 14-12 with 1:21 remaining. On the two-point conversion, Eagle River fumbled the snap: conversion unsuccessful.
Final Score: Lathrop 14, Eagle River 12
2021 Division II State Championship
SoHi vs Lathrop in the ASAA First National Bowl Division II Football Championship Game Saturday, October 16th at Service High School scheduled for 4 p.m. kick-off.
Follow the championship game on ESPN 1140AM and streaming live at radiokenai.com/ksld1140am
