Football: Chapman’s first playoff team features local trio

The Chapman University football team will be making its first NCAA Division III playoff appearance on Saturday at Linfield in McMinnville, Ore.

The Panthers, on an eight-game win streak with their first conference championship, include junior wide receiver Trace Curet (Costa Mesa High), sophomore running back Sean Davis (Newport Harbor) and senior tight end Dan Steele (Corona del Mar).

Chapman is 8-1, its last loss coming in its season and home opener against Linfield, 21-14, on Sept. 13. Linfield, ranked No. 10, is also 8-1.

The Panthers are ranked No. 17. They were perfect in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, including a 45-19 win over Whittier on Saturday to capture the conference title outright. That also was Chapman’s ninth consecutive road win.

The winner of the Chapman-Linfield matchup will advance to face the winner of No. 24 Texas Lutheran at No. 2 Mary Hardin-Baylor on Nov. 29.

The game can be seen live on Linfield’s website at : https://portal.stretchinternet.com/linfield/#

Davis has two catches for 18 yards and 14 tackles as a special teamer.

— From staff reports