Even with five turnovers in the first half, Livingston football still had an opportunity with one second remaining in the game, falling a touchdown short at 27-20 Friday night in Lumberton.
Livingston had built momentum since trailing 14 points in the fourth quarter. Lumberton held a 27-13 lead with over five minutes to play in the game, after a 35-yard touchdown run.
A 99-yard march in six plays culminated with a 13-yard connection from Lion quarterback Jax Ruiz to receiver Zayden Martin. They then forced a Raider punt that was shanked, taking over at their own 45 yard line.
However, it took just four snaps to turn it over on downs, seemingly putting an end to the competition. With 1:20 left, Lumberton only needed a few run plays to drain clock and the final Lion time outs.
The first snap was fumbled, and the Lions were given new life by falling on the loose ball. They would drive inside the Lumberton 5 yard line until a penalty backed them out to the 16. With six seconds remaining, Ruiz was wide on a throw to Uriah Tatum in the corner of the end zone. One final tick was on the clock as the ball hit the ground.
On the game's last play, Ruiz dropped and avoided pressure long enough to loft a pass over the middle that was tipped and floated above the hands of Robert Pullido.
“Five turnovers in the first half and you lose a one-score game is just gut-wrenching,” a dejected Livingston coach Tucker Carter said.
“Just poor execution in the first half. And, just finding a way to lose a game instead of winning a game. We had a chance to go tie it at the end. We're playing as bad as we did, and that just tells you how close we are. That's what hurts so bad, is we are that close. We’ve got to get over the hump at some point and win one of those that we should win. I think if we don't shoot ourselves in the foot in the first half, we felt like we were the better team.”
The first half was more than frustrating for the Lions, who turned the ball over on five occasions. Four fumbles, an interception, two turnovers on downs, and a three-and-out stopped Livingston through 24 minutes of play. The only success was a six-play possession that ended in junior kicker Dorian Ortiz sending one through the uprights from 50 yards out.
It was the defense keeping Livingston in the game. On multiple occasions, they were put in bad situations. Still, they held the Raiders to 13 points. Martin, Warren Hampton and Cade Randolph continuously provided pressure.
“That's a physical downhill run team, and we stopped them for the most part and have had another week of executing good game plans on defense,” Carter said. “Even if we just find a way to protect the ball and punt, we're in a better situation than just giving them the football.”
That 10-point deficit was quickly erased once the second half began, as a punt block set the Lions up inside the Lumberton 40. Three plays later, Zyleer King had a 1-yard touchdown.
Livingston's next possession allowed Ortiz to again show a powerful leg, hitting a 49-yard field goal to tie it at 13.
Taylor Haynes was the team's leading rusher, with 92 yards on 16 carries. Ruiz was 11-for-24 for 207 yards, with an interception and touchdown. Martin had five catches for 58 yards and a touchdown. Tatum matched him with five catches for 58 yards. Pullido had a grab that went for 70 yards.
“It's just the everyday process and locking in on the details Monday through Thursday,” the coach said of how the program can begin winning close games. “Every snap matters, every technique you use in blocking and catching and tackling, it always comes out and rears its ugly head in the worst moments, and you can't just sweep those things under the rug. It's got to be process oriented every day, detail oriented every day. We’ve made a lot of strides in that, make no bones about it, but we're still not where we want to be. I mean, this is a team a year ago that was up 30 points on us in the first quarter. So, it's not a moral victory, we're going to be very clear about that. But, we need to stop self-destructing.”
