Big Red hold off Red Raiders in state semifinal

Arkansas-SEMO Live Blog

MBA 31, Baylor 29Star: Adrian Harris caught 10 passes for 132 yards and two TDs in a losing cause for Baylor.Up next: MBA faces Ensworth in the Division II-AA state final; Baylor ends its season at 8-5.

The Baylor School football team jumped out to a quick lead in its TSSAA Division II-AA playoff semifinal against Montgomery Bell Academy on Friday night, and the Red Raiders ended the game with a flurry.

But what transpired in between was enough to give MBA a 31-29 win and end Baylor's season.

"Told our kids that we were going to have to come up with more intensity and effort than they have all year, and they did that," Baylor coach Phil Massey said after the game. "They played hard. We maybe had a couple of physical mistakes, but the effort was there."

Red Raiders quarterback Nick Tiano opened the scoring with a 4-yard run after a Baylor fumble recovery, and an interception return for a touchdown by Will Jumper set up the Red Raiders with a 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

But the Big Red's running game took charge in the middle of the game as quarterback Cole Euverard and running back Ty Chandler combined for 279 rushing yards and three scores.

Chandler's first touchdown -- a 24-yard run -- and a Davis Luster field goal pulled the Big Red within 14-10 at halftime, and Chandler's 3-yard run put them ahead in the third quarter. Euverard pushed the MBA margin to 31-14 with a scoring pass to Parker Bryan and a 4-yard quarterback keeper.

With less than six minutes to go, Baylor (8-5) tried to come back with pair of touchdown passes from Tiano to Adrian Harris -- the last coming with 21 seconds remaining. After successfully recovering the onside kick, Baylor just needed a field goal for the win, but the Red Raiders ran out of time to complete the comeback.

"It was a great high school game," Massey said "When they went up 31-14 we could have tucked our tails, but we didn't. Nick Tiano engineered a couple of great drives to get us back in it at 31-29."

Tiano finished 17-for-28 passing for 206 yards and 43 yards rushing, while Harris had 10 catches for 132 receiving yards.

"You can pick at little things," Massey said. "but what these kids accomplished this year has been fun to watch."

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