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41
Winner Shepherd SHEP 13-0
30
California (PA) CAL 11-1
Winner
Shepherd SHEP
13-0
41
Final
30
California (PA) CAL
11-1
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
SHEP Shepherd 7 14 6 14 41
CAL California (PA) 17 7 6 0 30

Game Recap: Football |

Shepherd Football Rallies Past California (Pa.) to Win Super Region One Crown

CALIFORNIA, Pa. – Senior quarterback Jeff Ziemba (Newark, Del./St. Mark's) completed 14-of-26 passes for 200 yards and three touchdowns to lead Shepherd University (13-0) to a 41-30 win over California (Pa.) (11-1) in Super Region One finals action of the NCAA II Football Championship at California (Pa.) on Saturday.

California took a 3-0 lead when Will Brazill connected on a 30-yard field goal with 11:09 remaining in the first quarter.

The Vulcans took a 10-0 lead when John Franklin scored on a three-yard plunge 9:39 left in the first quarter.

Cal upped its lead to 17-0 when Garry Brown returned a punt 53 yards for a score with 7:36 left in the first quarter.

Shepherd cut the lead to 17-14 when junior defensive end Myles Humphrey (Upper Marlboro, Md./Dr. Henry A. Wise) forced a fumble and junior defensive end Bruno Anyangwe (Hanover, Md./Clarksburg) returned it 36 yards for a score with 6:32 left in the second quarter.

Ziemba teamed with senior wide receiver Billy Brown (Gaithersburg, Md./Gaithersburg) on a 27-yard scoring strike with 39 seconds left in the second quarter to give the Rams a 21-17 advantage.

Michael Keir teamed with Brown on a 40-yard scoring strike with 21 seconds left in the half to give the Vulcans a 24-21 lead at the break.

Keir and Brown teamed on an eight-yard scoring pass with 9:28 left in the third quarter to extend the Cal lead to 30-21.

Ziemba and Brown teamed on a three-yard scoring pass with 2:42 left in the third quarter to cut the lead to 30-27. The extra point attempt was blocked.

Ziemba found senior wide receiver CJ Davis (Hagerstown, Md./South Hagerstown) in the end zone for a five-yard scoring pass with 11:06 left in the fourth quarter to give the Rams a 34-30 lead.

The Rams drove 83 yards on 15 plays on a 6:28 drive that culminated in a one-yard touchdown run by junior quarterback Connor Jessop (Ashburn, Va./Broad Run/Virginia Tech) with 1:14 left in the game to seal the win.

Brown had nine receptions for 172 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Shepherd receivers. Brown had 10 catches for 127 yards to lead the Vulcans.

Hlavach rushed 24 times for 159 yards to pace the Rams. Nick Grissom had 16 carries for 48 yards to pace the Vulcans.

Keir completed 21-of-41 passes for 269 yards for California (Pa.).

Shepherd gained 401 yards of total offense, while Cal had 327.

Senior linebacker Octavius Thomas (Myrtle Beach, S.C./Myrtle Beach) led the Shepherd defense with 15 tackles (nine solo). Luke Hrapchak posted 15 tackles (seven solo) for the Vulcans.

The Rams return to action next Saturday against a yet to be determined opponent. Pairings for the national semifinal games will be announced at 8 p.m. tonight.

Notes: Brown broke his single-season marks he set last year for receptions (97 -- 89 in 2015) and receiving yards (1,563 -- 1,492 in 2015) … Hlavach (1,122) went over 1,000 yards on the year and rushed for 100 yards or more for the sixth time this season … Ziemba eclipsed the single season marks for completions (240 -- 235 in 2015), passing yards (3,515 -- 3,414 in 2015), and touchdowns (31 -- 30 in 2015) … Shepherd is now 13-9 all-time in NCAA II postseason play …The Rams recorded their first win over California in the five game series.
 
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Jeff Ziemba tossed three touchdowns on the day.

3522
Brandon Hlavach rushed 24 times for 159 yards.

3520
Bruno Anyangwe made a pivotal play when he returned a fumble for a score in the second quarter.

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Octavius Thomas had 15 tackles (nine solo) on the day.

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Billy Brown had 11 catches for 189 yards.

 
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