LAKEVILLE - Facing a 4th and 2 from the Bremen 37 and the game on the line, LaVille head football coach Jeff Kaiser called a timeout. Kaiser simply said in the huddle, ". . . it's time to make a play." And LaVille made the play that sent the #5-ranked Lancers to a 28-14 victory over Bremen in the 2A Sectional 33 championship game at Lancer Field. After the timeout, senior quarterback Lucas Plummer took the snap, rolled right, broke the edge, got a couple of blocks, broke a couple of tackles and raced 29 yards for a very important 1st down. "You know we had the fourth down there and called a timeout," Kaiser said when asked about the play. "We said, it's time to make a play. "And what does (Plummer) do? He about got in there (end zone). That's a senior leader. He's had a great year so far and we are still going. He's a player." Plummer's carry and big play turned what could have been Bremen's ball into a LaVille 1st and goal inside the 10-yard line. One play later, Cody Allen took the ball, found the hole by the LaVille offensive line and dashed 8 yards. That back-breaking score that put LaVille ahead by two scores. Plummer added the point-after to push the Lancer lead to 28-14 and just 2:22 left in the game. Bremen was able to move the ball into LaVille territory with the passing of Silas Laidig, but three incompletions, including on 4th and 5 and the Lancer 8 turned the ball over on downs. LaVille ran the clock out and advanced to the IHSAA regional round at #10 Lafayette Central Catholic. LCC defeated Seeger 33-3 to win the Sectional 34 crown. The Lions won the toss to open the game and when LaVille fumbled on the eighth play of the first quarter, Bremen was in business. Laidig and Austin Young led BHS down field in five plays and Young finished off a 2-yard run to put Bremen ahead early. On LaVile's ensuing series, Allen was the workhorse getting each of the four plays and took the final carry 68 yards to the house. The kick failed and Bremen led, 7-6. On Bremen's next series, Plummer was able to make up for his own turnover with an interception. After hauling the ball in, he returned the ball 41 yards to the Bremen 11. Plummer then took the ball into the end zone on a QB-sneak. Michael Good was on the receiving end of Plummer's pass to convert the 2-point conversion. Allen made his presence known again with an interception of a Laidig pass. Then closed up an 11-play, 59-yard drive with a 10-yard TD run and the hosts were up 21-7. In the third quarter, Carson Anderson played a key role running the ball for Bremen before Young crossed the goal line from the 6 to close the gap to 21-14. "Hat's off to Bremen," said Kaiser. "They came in with a great game plan. They came in focused and ready to play, caught us a little flat-footed in the first quarter but we responded. That' what we've done all year. We find a way. You know, I told the guys, you just gotta win. It doesn't matter if it's pretty or not. Hey, we're moving on." Allen and Plummer led the LaVille rushing attack. Allen finished with 194 yards and two TDs. Plummer added 91 yards on 14 carries. "He just grinds," Kaiser said of Allen. "Cody is a player. It starts in the weight room with him and he just translates on the field. That's why he does what he does." It was the first sectional title for Kaiser after he took over for 10-year boss Will Hostrawser to start the season. "It feels great," Kaiser smiled after asking how he felt." We are moving on!" Braedyn Foster led the defense with 10 tackles, Xzavian Lafave 7, and Allen 5. Jonathan Neese had a fumble recovery for LHS and the Lancer defense had 7 quarterback hurries. We asked Foster what inspires him about the 2023 Lancer football team. "The seniors, for sure, they inspire me," said the 6'1" sophomore lineman. "I play for them and I don't want them to go out without a fight. It feels great to get a sectional championship for all the seniors going out this year." Bremen quarterback Silas Laidig finished 17 of 31 for 188 yards and two interceptions. His top target was Tyrus Graverson. He had 7 catches for 52 yards. "Bremen was tough tonight," Foster said of the sectional title game opponent. "Their quarterback (Laidig) is a big boy and he's tough to bring down. So we had a game plan for that. We did run a couple different looks at them. It's good to get the win." Bedock, who was the lone returning offensive line starter back this season, shared his thoughts about how last season ended and the 2023 championship. "After having such a disappointing end to last year then to have everyone doubting us and being able to rebuild," said the 2022 junior all-state offensive lineman. "And we are coming home with a trophy. It feels great. We just really battled. We had some things not go our way, we had a couple touchdowns called back. We had some penalties, but we battled back. Our first game was against Bremen in game one and to see the improvement. If you watch that game back in August and look at how the offensive line played tonight it was much better. All those guys on the o-line, this is their first year and they have grown so much. This win is just an amazing feeling." Allen, who has stepped in at running back after the graduation of Paul DeWitt, continues to have a special season. He reached 100 or more rushing yards in a game for the eighth time this season and needs 90 yards to surpass 1982 graduate Dennis Graf for 5th in single-season rushing yards. "I just love playing the sport and I love winning," said Allen, who opened the season with, at that time, a new career-rushing effort. "It's a great rivalry between the two schools. We know a lot about each other. But, I just really enjoy playing with this team and my teammates. We feel like we have a strong team. "I wanted to win this game because I wanted to continue to play with my friends that are seniors. We got behind early, but we never thought we were out of it. We know what we have and how capable we are. In our mind, the game was not over and we knew that we would fight back. It feels great." LaVille, now 11-1, set a new record for victories in a season. The Lancers will travel to Lafayette Central Catholic on Friday, November 10. It is the first meeting between the Lancers and the Knights. LCC is 9-3 overall and has won its last eight straight games. CLASS 2A SECTIONAL #33 Championship LaVille 28, Bremen 14 At Lancer Field, Lakeville, IN Score By Quarters Bremen 7 0 7 0 - 14 LaVille 14 7 0 7 - 28 Scoring Summary B - Austin Young 2 run; Tyrus Graverson kick L - Cody Allen 68 run; kick failed L - Lucas Plummer 2 run; Michael Good pass from Plummer L - Allen 10 run; Plummer kick B - Young 6 run; Graverson kick L - Allen 8 run; Plummer kick B LV First Downs 9 9 Yards Rushing 28 292 Comp-Att-Int 18-32-2 1-1-0 Yards Passing 188 0 Penalties-Yds 2-20 9-72 Fumbles 0 1 Punt-Avg 1-32 2-40