Published: November 16, 2009 10:35 am      

Lindsay uses two late TDs to stop Sulphur

LINDSAY — Just one season after making their longest postseason run since winning the Class 2A state championship in 2004, the Sulphur Bulldogs made an early exit from the playoffs Friday with a 22-8 loss at Lindsay.

The Bulldogs (6-5) and Leopards (8-3) were tied at 8-8 early in the fourth quarter when Lindsay's Zac Bustillos scored from a yard out on his only carry of the game with 8:02 to play. The pass for the two-point conversion failed, leaving the Leopards up 14-8.

Lindsay added an insurance touchdown less than four minutes later, when John Pinnick scored on a five-yard run.

Carson Tate gave the Leopards an early lead when he hit Jake Bowen on a 66-yard option pass with 1:21 left in the opening period and caught a conversion pass from quarterback Scott Hacker to make it 8-0.

The Bulldogs tied it with 3:02 left in the half on a 47-yard run by sophomore quarterback Ty Williams, followed by Williams' pass to Dillon Dilbeck for the two-point conversion.

Lindsay dominated in first downs (15-5), total yards (366-156) and passing yards (248-62) and limited Sulphur to 94 rushing yards — half of them on Williams' touchdown run — on 31 carries while forcing six turnovers. But the Bulldogs somehow managed to keep the game tied until the final period.

Hacker finished 16-for-30 through the air for 182 yards but was intercepted twice — once by Williams and once by Mason Franks.

Lindsay's opportunitistic defense shut down the usually dependable Sulphur running game in the second half and limited Williams to just three completions and 62 yards (47 of them on one pass to Nick West) in 19 attempts while also recording two interceptions, including one by Tate.

Although Williams was easily the game's leading rusher, all but 18 of his 65 yards (on 17 attempts) came on the scoring play. Junior tailback Chris Turrobiartes, who rushed for over 1,000 yards this season but struggled after being injured in Week 5, was held to a season-low six yards on just seven carries, and Dylan Walker — who had two 100-yard rushing efforts in relief of Turrobiartes earlier this season — gained just one yard on his only carry of the night.

In addition to their fourth-quarter touchdowns, Pinnick and Bustillos each had one of Lindsay's four fumble recoveries in the game.

With the victory, the Leopards advanced to a second-round showdown with Heritage Hall in Oklahoma City this Friday.