TEMPE - Liberty's quest for a third straight Open Division football title and its 34-game winning streak against Arizona opponents were in peril like never before during Saturday's semifinal against Chandler Basha.
Yet midway through the fourth quarter with a 16-16 tie, it looked like the Lions would find a way to get back to Mountain America Stadium for another title game. Liberty drove 79 yards in a bit more than four minutes and had first and goal from the Bears' 1.
After three Basha stops inside the one, three Basha offsides calls, a Liberty time out and a Basha fumble recovery the Bears had the ball at their 25 and all the momentum in the world. Junior kicker Mikey Barth hit a 38-yard field goal with 2:09 remaining and #2 seed Basha (11-1) held on for a 19-16 win at Corona del Sol High in Tempe.
