Oct. 30: Sabino 35, Marana 28
Sabino beat Marana on the road, 35-28, to secure a spot in the postseason in what was likely a de facto playoff game (see box score below).
Sabino (8-1) coach Jay Campos said he didn’t think a loss to 15th-ranked Marana would drop the No. 10-ranked Sabercats out of the Division III playoffs, but Sabino junior quarterback/receiver Drew Dixon said the Sabercats treated the regular-season finale like a playoff game.
“That’s what I was just telling the team, the playoffs started tonight, because if we lost then we don’t go to the postseason,” Dixon said.
This season will be Sabino’s 14th straight trip to the playoffs, while Marana (6-4) was seeking its first postseason appearance since 2007.
“It was an extra playoff game to us, I felt like every single person on our team felt like it was the first round of the playoffs and that’s how we came out and played it,” said Sabino safety/running back Taylor Killian.
The game was back and forth, with ties at 7-7, 21-21 and 28-28. Marana had a chance to tie it late until Killian got an interception in the final two minutes deep in Sabino territory.
“It felt great, a really exhilarating moment,” Killian said. “We played four quarters of football and I think this is a team win. It’s not one play that determined it.”
Dixon was 16 for 30 for 185 yards and ran for 39 yards on 12 carries. He passed for two touchdowns, ran for one and had a receiving touchdown while throwing two interceptions.
For Marana, quarterback Connor Leavens was 11 for 28 for 220 yards and a touchdown and interception. The junior signal caller had been sidelined since an Oct. 2 loss to Nogales.
The loss snapped a three-game win streak for Tigers, who had won five of their last six.
“In the end we found a way to dig deep and get it done against a good Marana team and they were fighting for a playoff spot and they’re a good team, so I’m just really proud of our guys,” Campos said.
Sabino rebounded from its only loss, a 3-0 result against Catalina Foothills in the rain two weeks ago.
After a bye last week, Dixon said the week extended the “bad taste” in their mouths.
“It was a miserable two weeks waiting to get back on the field,” Campos said.
Campos said the win was big because it gives Sabino a chance to host a playoff game when the brackets are announced on Saturday.
“At least we put ourselves in contention to potentially get one of those,” Campos said.
James Kelley
