Meadowview Christian (3-1) had to lean on its defense Friday night to come away with a 27-26 victory over defending state champion Victory Baptist (3-2).

With 16.3 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Meadowview’s Tyler Sebren picked off Victory’s Mason Byrd to seal the deal and keep the Trojans’ win streak alive.

“Any time you beat the defending state champion, it is a wonderful win. My boys played extremely hard. They didn’t quit,” said Meadowview head coach Lebo Jones.

“In years past, we would lay down and quit at the end, but we didn’t tonight. I’m just so proud of this team. It is the biggest win Meadowview has had in the last five or six years.”

Meadowview started the game off fast, scoring the first touchdown of the night with 9:19 left in the first quarter. Chris Wilson scored from 53 yards out, putting the Trojans up 8-0.

The Eagles were looking to strike back, but Meadowview’s Jeremy Lee ended the drive with an interception, getting the Trojans back in scoring position.

Meadowview’s next score came from JeVar McGuire from six yards out, putting Meadowview up 14-0 after the extra point attempt was blocked.

Victory Baptist didn’t waste any time answering back. With 4:55 left in the first quarter, Byrd connected with Brandon Holland on a 24-yard score, cutting into the Trojans’ lead.

With a chance to tie the game, Byrd threw his second pick of the night. Sebren picked it off and took it 32 yards to the end zone, putting Meadowview up 21-6.

“Tyler is a great kid. He usually runs the ball a good bit for us, but we put him strictly at blocking and playing defense this week, and he stepped up and played great,” Jones said.

The Eagles looked to get back into the game at the start of the second quarter with a 32-yard touchdown run from Alex Water, but the Trojans’ defense came up with key stops to limit the defending champions to just 12 first half points.

“If you don’t block anybody, you can’t win a ball game. We got dominated on the line of scrimmage,” said Victory Baptist head coach Jim Hardy. “It doesn’t matter what level of football you play. If you get dominated on the line, they will win every time.”

Meadowview ended the first half with a 2-yard rushing touchdown from McGuire, his second score of the night. McGuire would finish the game with 152 rushing yards.

It appeared both teams would go scoreless in the second half, but the Eagles pulled within seven points with a 4-yard touchdown run from Andy Cole, making the score 27-20.

A turnover on downs early in the fourth quarter pulled the Eagles within one point of tying up the game. Victory’s Brandon Holland weaved through the Trojans defense for a 23-yard rushing touchdown, making the score 27-26 after a failed one-point conversion.

With a one-point lead, Jones said he had confidence in his team. The Trojans drove down the field and came up short on a fourth down, giving Victory the ball back with less than four minutes to play.

“I told them we had to stop them and that would be the difference in the game, and luckily we did, and that ended up winning the game for us,” Jones said.

Victory’s drive ended with a punt, but Meadowview couldn’t move the ball. Another turnover on downs gave the Eagles one more chance.

“I was confident, but they’ve got a great passing quarterback,” Jones said. “He’s thrown a lot of touchdowns over the last few years, and I don’t think he’s thrown any interceptions until tonight.”

As Victory crossed the 50-yard line, Byrd tried to hit Cole on an out route. Sebren jumped the route and picked off the pass.

With 16.3 seconds left, Meadowview’s Jeremy Lee took a knee to run out the clock.

“I’m just so proud of my team. They did it all. It wasn’t the coaching. It was them,” Jones said.

“It wasn’t a hard game plan. We played man-to-man, and we ran the ball.”

Jones said the victory should move them up to second place in the standings. Meadowview plays on the road at Cornerstone Christian next week.