Crishaun Lappin leads Liberty into Sunrise Region final

Crishaun Lappin was wherever Liberty needed him to be on Thursday night.

Whether it was breaking tackles and he weaving down the left sideline for a game-clinching touchdown run in the Patriots 30-10 regional semifinal victory over visiting Foothill, or bursting through the Falcons’ line for two sacks after Foothill had a first-and-goal opportunity late in the fourth quarter, Lappin ensured a Liberty victory.

”I’ve had a lot of great players come through here,” Liberty coach Rich Muraco said. “He is among the best. He’s so versatile, can do so many things, creates so many mismatches from his defensive end position.”

Foothill trailed 17-3 in the fourth quarter and drove the ball to the Liberty 9 yard-line, setting up first-and-goal with about seven minutes to play. But Lappin sacked quarterback Koy Riggin twice in a row, forcing the Falcons to burn valuable time before they finally scored from 21 yards out.l

Lappin also picked off Riggin led to set up Liberty’s go-ahead touchdown — Zyrus Fiaseu’s 5-yard touchdown run — with 5:00 to play in the second quarter

The Patriots (9-2), who will play Green Valley next weekend in the Class 4A Sunrise Reigon final, are a pass-first team. But against the Falcons, Muraco focused on the running game.

“We look at film of some of our games and we only have eight or 10 runs for the entire night,” Muraco said. “That’s not going to help us as we move into the regional final, the state semifinals and hopefully the finals. That was a point of emphasis.”

To wit, Liberty quarterback Kenyon Oblad threw 10 passes in the first half. He finished 10 of 19 after throwing for 2,200 yards over the first 10 games of the season.

But with the game still tight at 17-10 after Foothill’s fourth-down score midway through the fourth quarter, Lappin put the game away on the ground, rumbling 34 yards for a score with 3:47 left in regulation. He finished the game with 116 yards on eight carries with the touchdown, an interception and three sacks.

“I just tried to bring everything I had left in the tank,” Lappin said. “It’s just amazing to be part of something special here. Everything went in my favor. It’s God’s work.”