Warriors Reach KCAC Semifinals; Fall to Top-Seeded Ottawa

LEE'S SUMMIT, Mo. – Midland University split a pair of games in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) Tournament on Saturday at the Paragon Star Sports Complex. The Warriors opened the day with a win over Southwestern College, 26-0, then fell to top-seeded Ottawa University, 38-13, in the tournament semifinals.

Midland 26, Southwestern 0

The Warriors and the Moundbuilders met for the third time this season, with both teams recording home victories. The teams battled through the first half while not finding the endzone.

After struggling offensively in the first two quarters, Midland found the endzone three times in the third. With 6:39 remaining in the quarter, Allaya Livingston caught a 30-yard touchdown pass from Angel Ioane Kaio, for the game's first score. Following the failed conversion, Midland led, 6-0. After a stop on defense, the Warriors' offense scored again. Capping off a short four-play drive, Ioane Kaio delivered a 28-yard touchdown pass to Alyssa Butler. The conversion to Kobie Jay was good, and Midland led 13-0 with 2:09 left in the quarter. Then, the defense got on the scoreboard as Olivia Dominguez-Millsop intercepted the Moundbuilders' pass and returned 17 yards for a touchdown. The conversion to Emily Ferron was good, putting the Warriors ahead, 20-0, with 1:55 left in the third quarter.

Midland's defense and special teams came up big during the next series. After holding Southwestern to a three-and-out, and forcing a punt, the Southwestern kick was returned by Butler back to the seven-yard line and lateralled to Livingston, who scored, on the opening play of the fourth quarter. The conversion to Butler was no good, and Midland led 26-0, with 11:45 left in the game. Both teams would run two more offensive series, but would not score, giving the Warriors the opening-round victory, 26-0.

The Warriors had 192 yards of total offense. Angel Ioane Kaio was 11-for-29 passing for 185 yards, with two touchdowns and one interception. Ioane Kaio also led the Warriors in rushing, carrying the ball three times for 12 yards. The top receiver was Allaya Livingston, who caught four passes for 108 yards and a touchdown. Alyssa Butler caught three passes for 43 yards and a score. On defense, Cydnee Redd and Olivia Dominguez-Millsop led the way with seven tackles, each. Redd had one tackle for a loss, while Dominguez-Millsop had an interception return for 17 yards and a touchdown. Allaya Livingston had four tackles and two pass breakups. Eleseana Patterson had two tackles plus an interception return of 35 yards and broke up three passes.

Ottawa 38, Midland 13

After picking up a win over Southwestern, Midland took on the top seed, in the Ottawa Braves. The second quarter turned out to be the difference as Ottawa scored 25 points to put the game out of reach.

Midland had the ball to begin the game and put together an 11-play drive that stalled at the Ottawa one-yard line. After a quick Braves' drive, the Warriors got the ball back and ran two plays before an Angel Ioane Kaio pass, intended for Olivia Dominquez-Millsop was deflected and intercepted by the Braves. They made the turnover count three plays later when they converted a 9-yard touchdown pass. The conversion failed and Ottawa led 6-0, with 1:42 left in the first quarter.

The Warriors tried to respond with a 9-play drive. However, an Ioane-Kaio pass was intercepted once again. Two plays later, Ottawa was back in the endzone on a seven-yard touchdown pass. After the failed conversion, they led 12-0 with 8:05 left in the second quarter.

The Braves kept the momentum going with a defensive score. Two plays into Midland's next drive, Ioane Kaio's pass attempt was picked off and returned 26 yards for a touchdown. The conversion was good, putting the Braves ahead 19-0 with 7:17 left before halftime. After seven plays, the Warriors' drive stalled out, giving Ottawa the ball back at the Warriors' 31-yard line with 4:08 left in the half. Ottawa ran seven plays and scored to lead 25-0 with 1:38 left in the half.

Trying to get a score before the half, Midland quickly ran seven plays but the drive stalled at the Warrior 37-yard line. With the use of a pair of timeouts, the Braves marched down the field in a hurry and scored on a one-yard touchdown pass, making it 31-0 at halftime.

Ottawa put the finishing touch on its scoring output in the third quarter. On their opening drive, the Braves ran nine plays and scored on a 15-yard touchdown pass. The conversion was successful and they went ahead 38-0 with 6:40 to play in the quarter.

On the next Midland drive, the drive came to a halt with another interception by the Ottawa defense. The Midland defense would get the ball back, however, as Eleseana Patterson picked off the Braves at the Midland 22-yard line. The Warriors would convert the turnover into points, as a six-play 47-yard drive was capped off by a 14-yard touchdown pass from Ioane Kaio to Olivia Dominguez-Millsop. Following the successful conversion to Livingston, the lead was cut to 38-7 with 11:17 to play in the game.

Midland denied the Braves a score, stopping an eight-play drive at their own 10-yard line. The Warriors then put together an 11-play drive that resulted in a four-yard touchdown pass from Ioane Kaio to Myana Sigers, with 33 seconds remaining in the contest. After the failed conversion, Ottawa led 38-13, which would be the final score.

For the game, the Warriors had 265 yards of total offense. Angel Ioane Kaio was 24-for-51 passing for 227 yards, two touchdowns, and four interceptions. Ioane Kaio carried the ball four times for 26 yards. Olivia Dominguez-Millsop caught four passes for 64 yards and a touchdown. Myana Sigers had four catches for 19 yards and a score. On defense, Allaya Livingston had five tackles and two pass breakups. Dominguez-Millsop had four tackles and broke up a pair of passes. Alyssa Butler had one tackle and two pass breakups.

Midland will now begin preparing for its final event of the season, the 2024 NAIA Flag Football Invitational. The annual event will be held in Atlanta, Georgia, and begins on Tuesday, May 7.