MALTA — Malta capped a perfect season and won its first Class B football championship in 18 years Saturday at Mustang Field with a 13-8 victory over Manhattan.
In a low-scoring affair, Malta took a 7-0 lead into halftime thanks to a seven-yard touchdown run by Blaine Downing in the second quarter.
The lead wouldn’t last long after halftime.
Manhattan — on its first possession of the third — jumped ahead on a touchdown pass from Michael Stewart to Brayden Zikmund. Instead of attempting to tie the game with an extra point kick, Manhattan went for two, and Stewart flipped a pass to George Stenberg for the conversion giving the Tigers an 8-7 lead.
The Mustangs, though, responded in the fourth as Stockton Oxarart tossed a touchdown pass to Treyton Wilke. An ensuing two-point try was no good, but Malta was back in front 13-8.
Manhattan would get one last go at it, and made things very interesting late. With the game on the line and the Tigers facing a fourth-and-goal play from the Malta 9-yard line, Dawson Hammond intercepted a Stewart pass and the Mustangs sealed the victory.
The win marks Malta’s first championship since 2006, and stands as the fourth title in program history. The Mustangs finished with a 13-0 record; Manhattan ended the season at 12-1.
