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The AFNORTH Lions, who thumped Baumholder 48-12 at home the previous week, set up a Division III title game against the Bucs on the Bucs’ home field this coming Saturday with a 52-7 Division III semifinal victory Saturday over Sigonella.

E.J. Ruiz, who rushed five times for 71 yards and completed five of eight passes for 153 yards, threw touchdown passes of 27 yards to James Perea and 57 yards to Yanick Hickman and ran 47 yards for a third TD as the Lions (7-0) broke to a 52-0 halftime lead in the game at Brunssum, Netherlands.

Senior Brock Blankenship, who carried 11 times for 143 yards, ran 22 and 32 yards for the first two TDs for AFNORTH, which also benefited from 31- and 40-yard interception-return TDs by Tizhuan Carroll and a 32-yard field goal by Tobias Christmann.

For all the offensive fireworks, however, AFNORTH’s defensive prowess continued to impress the Lions’ head coach.

"The starting AFNORTH defense has allowed only six first downs all season, and the secondary has limited opposing quarterbacks to three completions while intercepting seven passes," coach Greg Blankenship wrote in an e-mail report of the game.

"Zach Cooney and Aaron Black (two sacks each on Saturday) put tremendous pressure on every quarterback and have dominated the opposing defensive fronts of every team we have faced this year. Brock Blankenship (two forced fumbles), Kevin Kropp and Josh Ruiz have crushed the running lanes and helped the starting AFNORTH defense allow negative rushing yardage through the first half against every opponent we have faced in 2008."

Harold Martin threw a 39-yard TD pass to Austin Christopher in the second half for Sigonella (1-5). Four of the five D-III teams qualified for the playoffs.

AFNORTH and Baumholder will meet in the division title game as part of the Super VIII championships scheduled for Baumholder.

In Saturday’s other D-II semifinal:

Baumholder 28, Vicenza 9: At Baumholder, Prince Owusu had 123 yards rushing with two touchdowns, and Daniel Harris added 134 yards on the ground as Baumholder (5-2) rushed for 300 yards.

Owusu ran for two TDs, and the Bucs’ defense took care of the rest of the scoring — a 90-yard fumble return by Fred Styles and a 25-yard interception return by Edgar Acosta.

Reggie Haines kicked a 27-yard field goal and Nicholas X. Williams ran 29 yards for a TD that left Vicenza (4-3) up 9-8 at intermission before Baumholder took over.

All-Europe linebacker Brian Boatner paced the Bucs’ defense with nine solo tackles, a sack and a pass deflection.

According to Baumholder assistant Erik Majorwitz, Boatner also blew up the Vicenza option play several times by running the ball carrier down from the back.

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