Late Touchdown Spoils Wildcats’ Upset Bid at Ottawa

OTTAWA, Kan. - Leading by one with just under five minutes left to play, Baker women's flag football couldn't hold on in its road matchup at Ottawa on Sunday, falling to the Braves, 18-13 in a tough KCAC battle.

After taking a 7-6 lead early in the second quarter, the Wildcats held a one-point lead for most of the second half before OU scored with 4:40 remaining to squash BU's hopes of knocking off the reigning national champs.

The Wildcats were able to control the tempo with a balanced offense that saw Sanija Waller complete 10 of her 18 passes for 72 yards and a touchdown, while turning her 15 rushes in the game into 46 yards. Jaylin Harris had five receptions for 38 yards and a touchdown.

The Braves scored on the opening possession of the game, marching down the field on five plays to take a quick 6-0 lead after the extra-point attempt failed.

After a punt on their first offensive drive, the Wildcats got a huge spark on the defensive end with Gabriella Zabaletta picking off a pass from OU's Madysen Carrera, setting BU up nicely in Braves territory late in the first quarter.

Waller used a 14-yard to Harris and an OU penalty to get near the goal line before finding Harris again for a short score, giving the Wildcats a 7-6 lead just over a minute into the second quarter.

Ottawa retook the lead on the ensuing possession and went into halftime with a 12-7 advantage after a back-and-forth first 20 minutes.

The Wildcats came out of the intermission with their best drive of the day as Waller and Tara Llorente mixed in some short passes and another OU penalty set BU up close. Waller capped it off with a four-yard pitch to Alana Romey in the end zone to put Baker back in front, 13-12 with 7:16 left in the third quarter.

After a big fourth-down stop on defense, BU had a chance to build on its lead, driving down to the OU goal line to have a 1st-and-goal from the two-yard line. A penalty and a fumbled snap pushed the Wildcats back though and they weren't able to capitalize as OU held on fourth down to keep it at a one-point game.

The Braves drove the full length of field to erase the Baker lead and go in front, 18-13 with just under five minutes remaining.

BU was stopped on fourth down on its final time with the ball as OU finished off its second win against the Wildcats this year, owning the only two setbacks in Baker's 6-2 conference record.

Heading into the final weeks of the regular season, the Wildcats open up a three-game homestand with a matchup against Southwestern on Thursday, April 10 with kickoff from Liston Stadium set for 6 p.m.

#BakerBuildsChampions