MVC football: Vikings smash Avila, return to playoffs

KANSAS CITY -- It didn't take long for a "must" win to turn into a laugher for the Missouri Valley College football team Saturday.

Even with a playoff berth at state, whatever pressure may have existed for the Vikings during their regular season finale was gone at halftime of the 61-7 Heart of America Conference victory at Avila.

"We were ready to play," remarked Valley senior fullback Jacob Cahill, his team blowing out to a 45-0 halftime lead. "We were ready to take care of business and seal the deal for the playoffs."

Cahill did his part with two touchdown catches, plus a 35-yard reception on the second play of the game which set up senior David Allen's 2-yard rumble across the goal line on the next snap.

The Eagles were completely overwhelmed, managing only 17 total yards on offense during the first half and not getting a first down until two minutes into the third quarter.

That its starting quarterback, junior Austin Cole, was unavailable didn't help any -- although there may have been no individual other than Superman who could have saved Avila.

"We did exactly what we talked about and needed to do: get off to a fast start," noted MVC head coach Paul Troth, whose team scored more points in this game than in any other during his eight years at the helm. "We didn't want to let them hang around."

The Vikings scored three more times before the first period was over. Cahill was left alone down the right sideline for a 34-yard TD pass from junior Chris White.

"He just put the ball in a good spot," said Cahill, who was even more open down the left side when he hauled in a 65-yard pass from junior Micah Petersen in the fourth quarter. "We knew they were going to be running man-to-man and we got it deep."

Junior Nick Williams intercepted a pass at the Avila 33-yard line and White found senior Walter Ingram for 12 yards, leading to a 7-yard touchdown flip to senior Bryan Blackley.

A 22-yard punt return by senior Cortavious Anderson resulted in the final score of the period when White connected with senior Scott Humphrey for six yards.

Valley had only one possession of its first seven which didn't result in a touchdown, but got points off of junior Sam Toomer's interception when senior Adrian Trevino kicked a career-long 54-yard field goal 22 seconds into the second frame.

Allen scored his second TD on a 1-yard plunge after the Eagles fumbled the ensuing kickoff on a hit by junior Paul Wayne Thomas of Marshall, recovered by freshman Spencer Hython at the AU 19.

On the first play of the next possession, White hooked up with Ingram on a 50-yard touchdown bomb with 11:01 remaining in the half.

"We thought we might catch them in a couple of things coverage-wise where we could get guys open," Troth said. "We did early on."

The Vikings' began substituting on offense, with very few starters playing after halftime.

The one bright moment for Avila (4-7, 3-7 HAAC) was on its first series of the second half, when sophomore Derick Barnes threw to senior Damien Collins for 14 yards to cap a 13-play, 72-yard scoring drive.

The next time the Eagles got the ball, which began at their 1-yard line after sophomore Chris Heale's 61-yard punt, they were pinned in and Williams blocked a punt through the end zone for a safety.

Cahill, a converted linebacker, got his second score and freshman Richard Konu ran for a 9-yard touchdown with 1:27 left to end the onslaught.

White threw for 190 yards on 14 attempts and four touchdowns, the second time he's met that mark this season, in one half of action.

The 11th-ranked Vikings (8-2, 8-2) finished the regular season third in the league standings and will open the NAIA Championship Series, their third in four years, on the road at No. 7 Morningside (Iowa).

"Our guys buy into the mentality that it doesn't matter where you play," said Troth, whose club is 5-0 away from home this season. "Whoever you get now is going to be real, real good."