Warriors 22, Bruins 19

But the Bruins didn't get the chance because they fumbled the quarterback-center exchange on the fourth-and-goal play and turned the ball over to the Warriors trailing 22-19 with 1:40 remaining.

After Columbia spent its last timeout, Rochester quarterback Jardan Ruiz picked up 13 yards on a keeper to his own 14-yard line and, from there, the Warriors ran out the clock.

Earlier in its final drive, Columbia had a 16-yard touchdown run by Taylor Champion negated by an illegal shift penalty--a ruling Bruins Coach Matthew Whitmire called "incorrect."

The penalty didn't prove costly, however, as the Bruins kept the drive alive and eventually put the ball first-and-goal at the Warriors' 5-yard line. Three ensuing rushes--two by fullback Devin Dean, one by Champion--moved the ball within inches of the goal line.

On fourth down, Whitmire said the plan was to run Dean on a dive play into the line.

"We had the ball fourth and inches, and didn't punch it in, and that's our fault," Whitmire said. "But we also had our chances to put them away earlier in the game and we didn't. That's our fault too. We let them hang around and it came back to bite us."

After its first drive ended at Rochester's 6-yard line, Columbia made good on its second--a 51-yard, two-play series that Dean capped with a 23-yard scoring run with 4:08 left in the first quarter.

Early in the second, CHS went ahead 13-0 on a 3-yard run by Dean that finished off an 82-yard march.

Rochester eventually got on the board with 6:20 to go in the half when a well-covered Ryan Knutz batted Ruiz's end zone pass into the waiting arms of Jarin Ruiz.

Late in the quarter, Champion overthrew a wide-open Kent Shelley on a halfback pass play from Rochester's 46. The Bruins eventually had to settle for a field-goal attempt, but lost the opportunity because of a high snap from center.

On the opening drive of the second half, Rochester went 63 yards in six plays for a 14-13 lead.

Three series later, Columbia countered with a 71-yard drive that culminated in a 10-yard run up the middle by Dean and a 19-14 CHS advantage with 2:18 to play in the third quarter.

The Bruins weren't able to enjoy the lead for long, however, as the Warriors put together a nine-play, 80-yard scoring drive that Ruiz completed with an 8-yard toss to Knutz.

Sideline notes:

Columbia rushed for 405 yards, prompting Whitmire to say: "It's the first time, as a coach, that I've had a team run for 400 yards and not win the game. That usually doesn't happen"...

Champion finished with 310 yards--his second straight 300-yard game--to raise his season rushing total to 1,146 yards. Dean ended the game with 105 yards.