Replay: Pewamo-Westphalia wins Division 7 state title with 14-10 win over Lawton

The Pewamo-Westphalia football team is no stranger to the state finals; this is the Pirates' sixth trip to Ford Field, winning the Division 7 crown three times (2016, 2017, 2019) and losing twice (2011, 2015).

This will be P-W's first time facing Lawton, which is playing in its first state final. This is only the second time in program history the Blue Devils have won more than two playoff games in a season, winning a pair of district games last year before losing to Schoolcraft in the district final.

Follow along for updates throughout Saturday morning's state title game.

Fourth Quarter

FINAL: Pewamo-Westphalia 14, Lawton 10

Pewamo-Westphalia takes two knees, and the celebration begins at Ford Field for the Pirates, who have won their fourth state championship in program history, all since 2016.

For P-W, Cam Cook was 6 fo 15 passing for 101 yards passing, and added a rushing score and 12 yards. Dak Ewalt, who scored the go-ahead touchdown, led with 61 yards rushing. Troy Wertman had 48 rush yards and 14 receiving yards.

Defensively, Landon Nurenberg and Ashtin Wirth had eight tackles apiece. And Connor Bengal tallied the game-winning interception.

The P-W defense really did the job shutting down Lawton's Jake Rueff, who entered the game with 49 rushing touchdowns, which leads the *nation*, and 2,317 rush yards. He finished with 50 yards on 16 carries and caught two passes for 22 yards.

P-W defense rises up, Connor Bengal picks off Landon Motter pass, Pirates will win state title

Pewamo-Westphalia's defense needed to rise to the occasion, and it did.

On a first-and-10 play from the 25-yard line, Lawton QB Landon Motter tried to hit his receiver down the left sideline, but the safety over the top, Connor Bengal, intercepted the pass.

And that will give Pewamo-Westphalia its fourth state championship since 2016.

Lawton gets defensive stop

On third-and-9 from the P-W 44-yard line, the Pirates went for the game-sealing first down, but Evan Droste was well-defended and Cam Cook couldn't complete the pass.

Lawton takes over, first-and-10 on its own 15 with 1:52 to go and no timeouts. Hang on to your hats, folks. Pewamo-Westphalia 14, Lawton 10, 1:52 4Q.

P-W defense forces punt

Lawton got a first down on the first play, but then the P-W defense locked down and forced a punt. The key play on the drive was a third-and-7 from the Lawton 42 when the Blue Devils dialed up a reverse. However, there was not a clean exchange from the QB to the RB, and it ended up as a 7-yard loss.

A lucky break for P-W because if the reverse recipient, Jake Rueff, had received the ball cleanly, he had a lot of open green. Pewamo-Westphalia 14, Lawton 10, 3:32 4Q.

P-W back on top after Dak Ewalt 35-yard TD run

With Cam Cook back in the lineup, Dak Ewalt hasn't seen much action in the game. But here, in the fourth quarter, P-W turned to him on this drive and Ewalt responded.

On third-and-3 from the Lawton 35, Ewalt took the handoff to the right and sprinted to the end zone for a 35-yard score to give the Pirates a 14-10 lead. Ewalt also had runs of 5 and 7 yards on the 10-play, 80-yard drive that took 4:16 off the clock.

P-W, at one point, was 2 of 10 on third-down conversions, but converted twice on third down on this drive. Now the Pirate defense has to respond. Pewamo-Westphalia 14, Lawton 10, 5:50 4Q.

Lawton takes 10-7 lead on field goal

Lawton has its first lead of the game as Ethan O'Donnell drilled a 43-yard field goal, splitting the uprights to give the Blue Devils a 10-7 lead. Lawton 10, Pewamo-Westphalia, 10:06 4Q

Third Quarter

End Third Quarter: Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 7

Lawton has the ball, third-and-3 on the P-W 38-yard line when play resumes.

Tough sledding for P-W offense

Pewamo-Westphalia goes three-and-out again after starting on its own 12-yard line. The Pirates again misfired on a deep route to an open receiver after Cam Cook overthrew Damian Spitzley.

P-W has owned the field-possession game, but this Lawton flip has the Blue Devils starting on the P-W 45-yard line. Let's see if they can take advantage. Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 7, 0:36 3Q.

P-W, Lawton exchange three-and-outs

For the second time this game, P-W had an open receiver on a deep route and the pass was overthrown, as Troy Wertman's deep pass to Connor Russell was overthrown. That's 14 points now that the Pirates missed on open receivers running free. Lawton takes over on its own 30-yard line. Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 7, 4:30 3Q.

P-W punts on first possession of 2nd half

The Pirates picked up a first-down conversion on a 14-yard pass from Cam Cook to Connor Russell, and then faced a fourth-and-1 from the PW 47-yard line. However, P-W was whistled for a false start and was forced to punt. Lawton takes over on its own 10-yard line. Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 7, 7:55 2Q

Second Quarter

Halftime: Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 7

Pewamo-Westphalia's inability to cash in early after recovering the onside kick - right after scoring to take a 7-0 lead - might come back to bite the Pirates, as Lawton has the momentum heading into the break despite it being a tie game. P-W will get the ball coming out of halftime.

It's been a defensive battle, with P-W outgaining Lawton, 126-121.

For P-W, Cam Cook is 4 of 8 passing for 73 yards and has seven yards rushing and a score. Troy Wertman has 37 yards rushing and Brock Thelen has 34 receiving yards.

Lawton standout Jake Rueff has 42 yards rushing on 11 carries.

Reversal of fortune gives Lawton life, Blue Devils score

If you're a Pewamo-Westphalia fan, you're probably fuming.

One play after an interception by Landon Nuremberg was overturned by replay, Lawton went for the home-run ball and connected, as Landon Motter hit Luke Leighton down the left sideline for a 41-yard touchdown pass, as Leighton beat the defender on a double move. Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 7, 1:13 2Q

P-W punts after getting great field position

Pewamo-Westphalia looked like it might be in business again after a short Lawton punt set the Pirates up on its own 48-yard line, and then Cam Cook hit Troy Wertman for 12 yards on the first play.

But after that, Lawton's defense stepped up, stopping Dak Ewalt and Wertman twice, totaling minus-5 yards and then forcing an off-the-mark Cook pass on third down to force a punt. Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 0, 3:03 2Q.

P-W misses deep shot, punts

Pewamo-Westphalia went with a little trickeration, and it almost paid off for a 14-0 lead. On a first-and-10 from the Lawton 35-yard line, the Pirates ran a halfback toss pass to Troy Wertman. Wertman threw it deep to an open Connor Bengal, but it was overthrown by a couple yards and fell incomplete.

Three plays later, P-W punted. Lawton takes over on its own 33-yard line. Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 0, 7:15 2Q.

First Quarter

End First Quarter: Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 0

Lawton will have first-and-10 on its own 39-yard line when play resumes.

P-W's Cam Cook picked off

Lawton's defense has been stout the last two drives. On a fourth-and-8 play from the Lawton 42, P-W QB Cam Cook was looking deep for Connor Bengal, but he was picked off by Carter Cosby at the 15-yard line. Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 0, 1:51 1Q

P-W defense gets fourth-down stop in plus-territory

On a fourth-and-two play from the Lawton 48, Lawton QB Landon Motter tried to go around left end on a QB keeper, but the P-W defense sniffed it out and stopped him for a three-yard loss. P-W takes over on the Lawton 45-yard line. Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 0, 2:56 1Q

P-W recovers onside kick, but Lawton holds

Well, well, well. After scoring the touchdown, P-W went for the onside kick and recovered. Troy Wertman rushed for 15 yards on the first play, and the Pirates got another first down, but Lawton's defense held on a fourth-and-8 from the 15 and forced the turnover on downs. Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 0, 6:23 1Q.

Pewamo-Westphalia only needs three plays to take 7-0 lead

Pewamo-Westphalia only needed three plays to take advantage of the turnover. After a 34-yard pass from Cam Cook to Brock Thelen on the first play, Cook scored from 3 yards out two plays later to give Pewamo-Westphalia a 7-0 lead. Pewamo-Westphalia 7, Lawton 0, 10:25 1Q.

Lawton fumbles on first snap, P-W recovers

In the pregame, Bally Sports Detroit showed a rousing pregame speech by Lawton coach Wade Waldrup.

It did not carry over to the first series, as Lawton fumbled the ball on the first play of the game on the center-QB exchange. Trevor Spitzley recovered the fumble on the Lawton 36-yard line.

Pregame

How to watch Pewamo-Westphalia vs. Lawton

The Pewamo-Westphalia . Lawton state title game is on Bally Sports Detroit, which is on channel 663 on DirecTV and 430 on Dish Network. Coverage begins at 10 a.m.

Pregame Reading Material

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Contact digital sports reporter Phil Friend at 517-377-1220 or pfriend@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @Phil_Friend.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Pewamo-Westphalia vs. Lawton football: Score, live updates in D7 final