LISLE, Ill. – The Lakeland College football team came up just short in the quest for its first NCAA Division III playoff berth since 2009, losing to Benedictine (Ill.) University 16-0 in its season finale Saturday afternoon.
The Muskies saw their six-game winning streak snapped and finished in a three-way tie with Benedictine and Wisconsin Lutheran College for first place in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference. Under that scenario, the conference tiebreaker came down to point differential between tri-champions in their games against each other, with a maximum of 21 points differential allowed per game. Benedictine and Lakeland both finished with a +10 differential in the tiebreaker, ahead of the -5 for WLC, meaning the tie reverted back to the head-to-head winner between the two tied teams, putting the Eagles in the playoffs ahead of the Muskies.
Benedictine (6-4 overall, 5-1 NACC) won its fifth straight game and qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2011. Lakeland also finished 6-4 overall and 5-1 in conference, but the Muskies have to settle for a share of the NACC title after leading the conference standings from the start this year.
It was a bitter way to finish a successful season for Lakeland, which had a bad day on offense, gaining just 54 yards of total offense, including -16 yards rushing. The Muskies also turned the ball over four times on interceptions and had -4 yards after halftime while never crossing midfield in the second half.
Benedictine also dictated on offense, from the very first play of the game. Artie Monaco broke free for a 60-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage to give the Eagles a 6-0 lead, and the hosts gained 372 yards, notched 24 first downs and hogged the ball on offense for 37:47 of the game.
Benedictine led 6-0 at halftime and tacked on a 22-yard field goal midway through the third quarter for a 9-0 lead.
The play that proved to be the decider for Lakeland's season came in the fourth, when Ryan Keener hit Greg German for a 43-yard touchdown pass one play after the third interception of the day thrown by A.J. Veloz (Fr.-Whiting, Ind.). The Eagles missed their first extra point of the day, but converted this one for the final margin.
Veloz completed 13 of 33 passes for 70 yards, while Richard Micheaux (Jr.-Taylor, Mich.) led the receiving corps with three catches for 25 yards. Kendrick Burks (Sr.-Pontiac, Mich.) rushed 13 times for 23 yards, finishing his career fourth on Lakeland's all-time rushing list with 2,346 yards.
The Muskie defense had a mixed day, allowing a season-high 216 rushing yards while holding up well against the pass with the exception of Keener's late touchdown pass to German. Lakeland held Benedictine to 13 of 27 passing for 156 yards, but the Muskies were called for four defensive holding or interference penalties to extend Eagle drives.
Landon Derginer (Jr.-Marinette, Wis.) led the defense with 13 tackles (three solo) and Kevyn Lewis (So.-Romulus, Mich.) added 10 tackles (four solo). Yaphay Harvey (Sr.-Milwaukee, Wis.) concluded his career with nine tackles (four solo), including a sack plus a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and two passes broken up. Patrick Johnson (Sr.-Pontiac, Mich.) also added an interception.
The Muskies finished with their second straight winning season and their third NACC championship under Head Coach Kevin Doherty. Lakeland's six-game winning streak this season also was its longest since a seven-game streak in 2005.
Muskies fall to Benedictine, finish one point shy of playoff berth
/seasons/2014/boxscores/20141115_c7x2.xml
2014
Lakeland
0
Benedictine
16
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lakeland (6-4) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Benedictine (6-4) | 6 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 16 |
Nov 15, 2014