SURPRISE, Ari. – For the second time in three years, the Louisiana Christian University football team will call itself Sooner Athletic Conference Co-Champions after dominating #11 Ottawa Spirit 48–13 Saturday night at Spirit Field.
 
The win by Louisiana Christian moved both the Wildcats (8-3, 7-1 SAC) up and #11 Spirit (8-1, 7-1 SAC) down into a three-way tie with Texas Wesleyan (7-4, 7-1 SAC) for the conference championship. By virtue of tiebreakers, the Rams receive the SAC's automatic bid to the NAIA Football Championship Series.
 
LCU and OUAZ will find out if they've done enough to earn at-large bids into the playoffs when the NAIA Football Championship Selection Show airs at 6 p.m. Sunday on the NAIA YouTube channel.
 
Kylon Polk, who was coming off a four interception and one touchdown day a week ago, got his first pick of this game to set up the game's first score. After the Polk pick set the Wildcat offense up at the Spirit 38, the offense used seven plays to traverse that distance, the final 16 on a Bryce Perkins to EJ Scott pass to the end zone for a 7-0 lead. That would be the score at the end of the first quarter.
 
OUAZ got the first points of the second quarter on a 30-yard field goal to make it 7-3. LCU answered that score with a touchdown on their ensuing drive as, once again, Perkins found Scott, this time from 33 yards out to give the Wildcats a 14-3 lead.
 
The Spirit looked to get some momentum right before halftime with a 30-yard rushing touchdown which cut the LCU lead down to 14-10 with less than three minutes left to halftime. As the two teams went to their locker rooms for the break, the Wildcats led 14-10.
 
OUAZ pulled a bit closer to open the third quarter, scoring on a 31-yard field goal to get within a point at 14-13.
 
But from that point on, the game belonged to the Wildcats. LCU again answered the OUAZ field goal with a touchdown, going 57 yards in six plays and took 2:14 off the clock with Perkins finding Omarius Davis from 23 yards out for the touchdown to make it 21-13 LCU with 7:18 left in the third quarter.
 
LCU expanded the lead late in the quarter as Datlan Cunningham punched the ball in from one yard out to cap a five-play, 69-yard drive in 1:23 to extend the lead to 28-13.
 
Polk, who added a second interception in the first half, made it back-to-back weeks with a pick-six, as he took in another wayward OUAZ pass and raced 58 yards to the end zone to give LCU a 35-13 lead with 14 seconds left in the period. That would be the score after three quarters of play.
 
The LCU defense added even more points to the scoreboard early in the fourth as Jermarian Jackson picked up the loose ball and raced 30 yards on the fumble return to the house, giving the Wildcats a 41-13 lead.
 
Cunningham capped the scoring with just less than four minutes left in the contest as he again plunged into the end zone from a yard out. That ended a nine-play, 43-yard in 4:20 drive, giving LCU the game's final points at 48-13.
 
Perkins finished the game 11-of-23 for 180 yards passing and three touchdowns.

Scott was his top target as he ended the game with seven receptions for 135 yards and two scores. Davis had three catches for 37 yards and a touchdown as well.
 
The Wildcats got 83 yards from Jaterrius Johnson on 18 carries. Cunningham was handed the football 19 times and gained 54 yards with two touchdowns.
 
LCU's defense was key in the win, holding the SAC's highest scoring offense to just 13 points while getting five turnovers, two of which were returned for scores. Polk had three interceptions, including the pick-six, while Marques Hampton also had a pick. Jackson had the fumble return for a TD as week.
 
The Wildcats now await a potential playoff berth, which will be revealed in the selection show at 6 p.m. Sunday.