Jamen Williams threw a touchdown pass.

Then he said a prayer.

The Fenwick quarterback delivered perhaps the biggest offensive play of the team’s IHSA 6A state semifinal game at Nazareth on Saturday, evading pressure and finding running back Tommy Thies for an 11-yard touchdown pass in the first phase of overtime.

Noah Sur’s extra point gave Fenwick a seven-point lead over the Roadrunners, who answered when running back Charles Calhoun plowed forward for a 1-yard touchdown. Nazareth elected to go for the win, meaning Fenwick’s defense needed one final stand.

“We had to score,” Williams said. “They stopped the run, so we passed it. I was back there praying, but I knew we had it. Our defense has come through in the clutch week after week.”

With a spot in the 6A state championship on the line, Williams and a sold-out crowd watched as the Friars defense – led by safety Jake Thies – stopped a Calhoun run on the two-point conversion attempt to stun the Roadrunners 28-27 and end Nazareth’s quest for a fourth straight title.

Fenwick will face East St. Louis for the state championship at 1 p.m. next Saturday at Hancock Stadium.

“It was now or never,” Thies said. “I love these guys so much, and it showed on the field. We knew they were a really good team, but we knew the last time they lost in the playoffs was to us. ... We emphasized reading our keys and staying true to doing our job.”

Entering Saturday’s semifinal on a nine-game winning streak, the three-time defending 5A champion Roadrunners (11-2) drove the ball down to the Fenwick 1-yard line on their first series of the game. But a fumble and a recovery by linebacker Michael Murphy enabled the Friars, who forced three turnovers, to take the ball.

Fenwick (10-3), which beat Nazareth 28-17 in the 2021 playoffs en route to winning a state championship, went 98 yards to take the first lead of the semifinal matchup. Back-to-back 20-yard runs by Jake Thies, who totaled 205 yards Saturday, eventually led to a 45-yard touchdown run by older brother Tommy Thies.

“Execution was key,” said Tommy, who had 63 total yards. “We’re pumped, and we can’t wait for what’s next. We just want to keep getting better every day, and it’s about us, so if we can execute our stuff, we can beat anybody.

“When we come ready to play, it’s going to be a tough game for whoever’s on the other side.”

A heavy dose of Calhoun, who rushed for a team-high 145 yards, allowed Nazareth to even the score late in the first quarter. The junior running back, who had 73 total yards after one quarter, caught a 6-yard swing pass from quarterback Jackson Failla for a touchdown to help the Roadrunners tie the game at 7-7.

“I couldn’t do it without my offensive line,” Calhoun said. “Once we started moving the ball, we kept doing it. This is definitely going to make us determined next year, and we always come in ready to go hard. We’re going to get our revenge next year.”

Nazareth made a huge special teams play late in the second quarter, blocking Sur’s 42-yard field-goal attempt to keep the game tied. The Roadrunners capitalized, with Failla hitting wide receiver Jake Cestone on a 22-yard pass before keeping a read-option carry up the middle for a 2-yard touchdown run.

“The bonds we’ve made ... none of that will be lost,” said Failla, who threw for 170 yards. “Regardless of how our season ended, we’re going to stay together for life, and that’s what matters. Everyone was ready to go, and when the game was over, it was a flood of emotions. Everyone was in disbelief.”

The two CCL/ESCC programs continued to trade blows near the end of the second quarter, when Williams scrambled to his left and found wide receiver Raphiel Stewart, who dove for the pylon and scored on a 12-yard touchdown pass. Sur made the extra point to make the score 14-14, which stood after three quarters.

Both defenses forced key turnovers in the second half. Fenwick’s Josh Morgan intercepted Failla twice, including once in the fourth quarter to precede Fenwick’s game-tying drive. On the Nazareth side, linebacker Dylan Wellner recovered a fumble forced after a Williams completion to Jake Thies early in the fourth.

The Roadrunners, who went ahead on Eddie McClain’s 12-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter, sacked Williams five times. But the 5-foot-9 senior, who threw for 283 yards, responded time after time, delivering a 45-yard strike up the seam to Thies with under two minutes remaining.

“It feels amazing,” Williams said. “I can’t believe it’s come to this. We’ve had a lot of ups and downs, but we keep continuing to build and all of our morning workouts ... that’s what those are for. We knew they would switch things up a lot, and our main goal was to run the ball, but we wanted to hit our passes when we had them.”

After a 32-yard catch-and-run by Thies, who caught four passes for 102 yards, Williams kept the ball and ran through the middle for a 4-yard touchdown with 1:13 left. Nazareth got the ball down to the 16-yard line, but with five seconds left on the clock, kicker Billy Harding’s potential game-winning field goal shot low and right of the uprights, leaving the score tied 21-21.

Fenwick took the ball to start overtime and was faced with a third-and-goal situation, but Williams avoided defenders long enough to find Tommy Thies uncovered in the back of the end zone. Nazareth scored on its third play of overtime, with Calhoun running for 9 yards before getting in on a third-down run play.

The Friars will take on East St. Louis, which cruised over St. Laurence 50-7 in the other 6A state semifinal game Saturday. It’s Fenwick’s first state title game appearance since defeating Kankakee 35-15 to take home the 2021 5A state championship.