HILMAR — In the end, Ripon Christian just got started a little too late.
After a three-week layoff thanks to a first-round playoff bye and forfeited second-round game, the Knights struggled on Friday to get anything going against defending Division VI-AA state champion Hilmar and let the Yellowjackets jump out to a four-touchdown lead.
By the time Nolan Lingley found his rhythm from the pocket and Sean McGovern began consistently shedding tacklers, the early damage had been done. Ripon Christian’s offensive flurry wasn’t enough to come back in a 47-28 defeat at McSweeney Field in the Sac-Joaquin Division VI semifinal matchup.
Hilmar defeated the Knights 57-14 in the title game last year, starting with 34 unanswered points.
“I’m not going to make any excuses about why we played the way we did tonight, we made mistakes on both sides of the ball and we needed to do things better if we wanted to beat a good team like that,” Ripon Christian Head Coach Randy Fasani said. “I couldn’t be prouder of our team tonight, though.  We said that no matter what the score was, we weren’t going to give up and these guys fought all the way to the end.
“This isn’t the score you want to see on the scoreboard, but we played with heart.”
And against a team like Hilmar, the last thing you can do is spot them points.
While the Knights struggled to get their offense rolling, Hilmar extended its early lead in the first half when Joseph Olsson stepped in front of a Nolan Lingley pass and returned it 20 yards for a touchdown that made it a two-possession game.
The Yellowjackets would add another pair of touchdowns before Ripon Christian finally found the board on a McGovern 2-yard plunge.  While the Knights would rebound in the game’s second half and finally find the familiar groove that they rode through the Southern League, a second interception returned for a touchdown — this one by Lucas Cardoso — in the third quarter slammed the door on any hope of a comeback.
For McGovern, a senior, the concept of giving up even when they were down wasn’t something that anybody on the team was willing to embrace.
“We knew that this had the potential to be the last game of our season, and we were going to fight no matter what the scoreboard said,” McGovern said, holding back tears. “We were a little bit slow to get started tonight and by the time we did it was too late.
“We knew they would be a good football team, but we weren’t going to give up and we didn’t.”
McGovern finished with 129 yards on 16 carries and found the end zone three times, and also pulled in four passes for 62 yards.
Hilmar defends its section title next Saturday, Nov. 30 against Escalon at Lincoln High in Stockton. 

SCORING SUMMARY
Ripon Christian 0       7      7        14 — 28
Hilmar                       13     17      14     3 — 47

First quarter
H—Cole Bailey 6 run (Miguel Padilla kick), 7:39.
H—Joseph Olsson 20-yard interception return (Padilla kick failed), 6:35.

Second quarter
H—Justin Barros 12 run (Andre Alves kick), 7:01.
H—Bailey 3 run (Alves kick), 3:43.
R—Sean McGovern 2 run (Caleb Terpsma kick), 2:02.
H—Alves 29 field goal, 0:23.

Third quarter
R—McGovern 47 run (Terpsma kick), 6:49.
H—Steven Silva 1 run (Alves kick), 3:48.
H—Lucas Cardoso 65-yard interception return (Alves kick), 1:29.

Fourth quarter
R—Nolan Lingley 17 pass from Jacob Van Groningen (Terpsma kick), 11:12.
H—Alves 41 field goal, 7:42.
R—McGovern 3 run (Terpsma kick), 2:41.