QUINCY, Ill. -  Senior linebacker Cody Leonard and senior running back Theo Hopkins willed the Quincy Hawks football team to a 24-21 win on the final day of the 2018 season.  The Hawks defeated the Southwest Baptist Bearcats to finish the season 4-7 and 3-4 in the GLVC.

Play by Play

1st Quarter

The Hawks elected to receive the opening kick off and immediately got on the scoreboard.  

Theo Hopkins took the second play of the game 62 yards to the SBU 22-yard line and put the Hawks in prime field position.  After a pair of positive plays, the Hawks third down pass fell incomplete and QU was forced to attempted a 33-yard field goal.  

Place kicker Michael Klotz put the ball through the uprights to give the Hawks a 3-0 lead on the first possession of the game. 

The Bearcats answered back with an equally impressive drive.  SBU leaned on the rushing game as they rushed 10 times for 74 yards on their opening drive.  

On fourth and one at the Hawks 19, quarterback Dylan Mountain utilized a perfect read option and scampered for a 19-yard touchdown to put SBU on top 7-3.  

After the two opening scoring drives, both teams punted on their next possessions.  

Following the Bearcats punt, Theo Hopkins struck.  On the first play of the Hawks third possession, Hopkins went 61 yards for his first touchdown of the game and gave the Hawks a 10-7 lead with 4:36 to play in the first quarter.  

The Hawks defense held firm after the touchdown forcing a three and out to give the ball right back to the offense.  

However, QU could not take advantage using just 53 seconds on their possession and punted to the Bearcats.  

SBU took over just before the start of the second quarter.  

2nd Quarter 

Good field possession allowed for the Bearcats to attempt a 41 yard field goal on the first possession of the second quarter.  SBU lined up for a 41-yard field goal.  Kicker Alec Gathright made his attempt as he appeared to tie the game.  

A holding penalty nullified the kick and the bearcats were forced to punt.  

The Hawks best scoring opportunity began with their possession at the 9:30 mark in the second quarter.  A 27-yard completion by Andrew Rund to Chris Poindexter set up the Hawks with a first and 10 at the SBU 28.  

A 17-yard rush by Rund gave the Hawks the ball at the SBU 11-yard line.  A pair of positive plays put the Hawks on the SBU three as the Hawks faced fourth and two.  QU elected to go for it and were stoped as Tyler Curts met Theo Hopkins in the back field to force a turnover on downs.  

QU's defense continued to hold strong, forcing the third punt of the quarter just before the half.  Quincy elected to run out the remainder of the clock and went into the half leading 10-7.  

3rd Quarter

The Bearcats opened the second half with the first possession.  SBU went into its bag of tricks on the first possession of the half.  Dylan Mountain threw a backwards pass to Connor Ratcliff, Ratcliff then found Joshua Tips for a 47-yard touchdown.  The Bearcats held a 14-10 lead just two minutes into the second half.  

Andrew Rund found his rhythm on the ensuing possession.  Rund completed 4-6 passes on the drive, including a three-yard touchdown pass to David Tabakovic to put the Hawks back on top 17-14.  

The Hawks defense held the Bearcats to another punt.  SBU's punter, Jackson Bagley, placed a perfect punt at the Hawks half yard line.  

QU took over at their own one with 3:37 to play in the third quarter.  Three straight positive yard plays and a pass interference put the Hawks at their own 32 after being pinned deep.

4th Quarter 

Despite the positive plays, QU would be forced to punt again.  Nathan Kewney sent a 53-yard punt to the SBU seven.  A 25-yard return was called back after a block in the back forced the Bearcats to start their drive at the seven.  

The Bearcats were determined to cut into the lead on their following drive.  SBU marched the ball to the QU 20 and set up to attempt a 37-yard field goal to tie the game at 17-17.  Alec Gathright's attempt banged off the left upright and the Hawks escaped the scoring threat.  

QU gave the Bearcats the ball right back as a juggled read option by Andrew Rund and Theo Hopkins allowed SBU to have the ball at the QU 36-yard line.  

Quarterback Dylan Mountain used his legs as the Bearcats scored on a four play drive to take a 21-17 lead with just under six minutes to play.  

A 45-yard kick off return by Sa'ron Cunningham gave the Hawks the ball at the SBU 45-yard line. 

One play later, Theo Hopkins exploded for his second touchdown on a 45 yard run to put the Hawks on top 24-21.  

QU's defense and its leader Cody Leonard would be asked to make one final stop to secure the win.  The defense did just that stopping the Bearcats on fourth at five at the SBU 48-yard line.  

The Hawks offense used the final 4:05 of game clock to win its fourth game of the season.  Shane Barrett secured the win on a 3rd and nine first down rush to give the Hawks the victory. 

Stats Leaders

Theo Hopkins: 16 rushes, 219 yards, 2 TDs
Cody Leonard: 24 Total Tackles (GLVC Record), 3 TFL, 1 Sack

Notes

Cody Leonard set the GLVC record for tackles in a single season with 168.  He finished the season with 88 solo tackles, 80 assisted tackles, 17 tackles for loss, and 5.5 sacks.  He finished his career with 376 total tackles which is good for fourth in GLVC history.  He also finished with 
223 solo tackles in his career.  

Leonard's Records

Total Tackles in a Career (QU) - 376
Solo Tackles in a Career (QU) - 223
Tackles in a Single Season (GLVC, QU) - 168
Solo Tackles in a Single Season (QU) - 88

QU's Record

4-7, 3-4 GLVC