Titans one step from state title game
West Salem holds off Lincoln to move on to semifinals
By Mark Gilman

The West Salem Titans came into Saturday's 6A quarterfinal game with Lincoln knowing that the Cardinals were much better than their 6-5 record indicated.

Lincoln showed they were more than worthy of going deep into the playoffs, staying with the fourth-ranked Titans until the final seconds before West came away with a 28-21 victory to advance the team to the state semi-finals for the first time in school history. The Titans will face Tualatin next Friday night at PGE Park. The OSAA will set the exact time by Monday.

Early on in Saturday's contest, West looked like they might run away with the game. They began with a good kickoff return to their own 44 yard line, then marched 56 yards on six plays in just 1:53 to take a 7-0 lead. West running back Jordan Jenkins ran it in from one yard out, after being set up by a 23 yard pass to the one yard line from Aaron Hire to receiver Matt Alto.

After Lincoln punted the ball on their next drive, West Salem again mounted a sustained drive that ended suddenly when Bret Gilbert was stripped after a pass reception near the Lincoln 20 yard line, and defense back Ross Meinhart returned it to the Titan 25 yard line. Six plays later, Cardinals wide receiver Jordan Polk scored on a reverse play from six yards out to tie the game at seven with less than 30 seconds left in the opening period.

West Salem regained the lead midway through the second quarter on an 11 play, 62 yard drive. On third and ten from the Lincoln 29 yard line, Hire threw a high pass into the right corner of the end zone for Jordan Bishop, who out jumped the defenders for the score to boost West's lead to 14-7.

Lincoln took the ensuing kickoff and marched from their own 21 to the West Salem 36, where the Cardinals were stopped on a fourth and short and turned the ball over on downs. West Salem drove to the Lincoln 25 yard line, but Ryan Allen missed a 35 yard field goal attempt with 26 seconds left in the half.

In the second half, Lincoln started with the football and moved across inside the West Salem 40 before Cardinals quarterback Jayson Hobby was picked off at the Titan 15 yard line by cornerback Jake Simpson, who returned the ball to the Lincoln 44 yard line. A late hit by the Cardinals out of bounds added on 15 more yards, and West started their next drive from the Lincoln 29.

West Salem went to Jenkins on four straight runs, and he went into the end zone from four yards out to give the Titans a 21-7 lead with 6 1/2 minutes left in the third period.

But the comfortable lead was short lived as Lincoln scored two unanswered touchdowns. Hobby, who rushed for 153 yards on 20 carries from Lincoln's spread offense, scored on a six yard scamper with 4:43 left in the third, capping off a 54 yard drive that took less than two minutes.

Lincoln appeared ready to tie the game on their very next drive, manuvering inside the West 20 yard line. But Hobby fumbled and Simpson recovered the loose ball at the Titan 16 with 38 seconds left in the quarter.

West was unable to move the football, but Allen boomed a 55 yard punt to start Lincoln at their own 25 yard line with just over ten minutes to play. The Cardinals sliced quickly through the Titan defense on a combination of Hobby scrambles and short passes, scoring less than 2 1/2 minutes later on an 11 yard run by Hobby to tie the game at 21 with 7:44 left.

West Salem exerted control on the ensuing kickoff, as Bishop took a lateral on the kick and returned the ball to the Lincoln 48 yard line. The Titans then began a time consuming drive, taking ten plays and 4:44 to reach the end zone. Jenkins scored his third TD of the afternoon on a one yard run to make it 28-21 West with three minutes left in the game.

Lincoln wasn't finished. Starting from their own 20 yard line, the Cardinals moved deep into Titan territory with just under a minute to go. A pass to the end zone was batted down, and a run attempt resulted in a loss to give Lincoln a third and 15 from the West 20. On the next play, Hobby threw the ball towards the end zone to an apparently open DeAndre Taylor, but Bishop leaped up at the goal line and came down with the ball on the West Salem one yard line with 13 seconds remaining. West took one snap to run out the clock and ice the victory.

Jenkins rushed for 171 yards on 30 carries for West Salem (10-1), while Alto topped Titan receivers with three catches for 53 yards. In addition to his rushing yards, Hobby was 14 of 19 passing for Lincoln, but was intercepted twice. All totalled, West Salem forced four Lincoln turnovers in the game.

"Good teams find a way to win," said West coach Shawn Stanley after the game. "That's what we did today."