The Swordsmen are survivors in Western Division semifinal

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They had less than two minutes to work with. They had 68 yards to go. They had a bit of magic and drove frantically.

And they did it -- pulling off a cardiac conclusion when Aubrey Haynes bullied into the end zone with 27.5 seconds remaining to give St. Paul an 18-14 victory over host Gahr in a Western Division semifinal.

‘A great feeling,’ Haynes howled, ‘an all-time great feeling.’

So the Gladiators are gone -- the Swordsmen are survivors. And none of it was predicatable.

-- Anthony Stitt

Trailing, 14-3, with about seven minutes to play, St. Paul (9-4) snagged some momentum when Eddie Di Dios scored on a 10-yard dash, then the Swordsmen added two more points on the conversion.

Still, all looked bleak when Gahr picked off a pass with 2:59 left. But the St. Paul defense shut down the Galdiators on four plays -- which set up the game-winning drive.

And now the Swordsmen will play in the division finals for the first time in 10 years. On Friday, they’ll meet Palmdale (12-1), an upset winner over second-seeded Dominguez in the other semifinal Friday night.

-- Anthony Stitt