Yokota quarterback Josh Low tosses a pass by Zama defender Isaiah Segarra. (Zama football)

CAMP ZAMA, Japan – With Casey Bumpers sidelined for much of the last month, Yokota struggled to get yards and points. But no sooner did he return that the Panthers’ offense came alive.

Bumpers ran for 79 yards on 12 carries, Jay Douglas and Josh Low rushed for touchdowns and Rodrigo Negron returned a fumble for a touchdown as Yokota upset top-seeded Zama 22-6 on a rainy Friday evening in the Far East Division II football semifinals.

“We have the pieces; it was a matter of us coming together as a cohesive unit,” Panthers coach Michael Woodworth said. “We had a lot of injuries. But we finally got healthy again.”

With the win, the Panthers (3-3) earned the right to visit Matthew C. Perry in next Friday’s D-II final. It’s Yokota’s first trip to the D-II title game since losing 51-36 at Daegu nine seasons ago.

“Casey was our workhorse,” Woodworth said. “We got him back and it just changed the whole offense. He doesn’t want to go down. He got the game ball. Those were hard yards and well earned.”

Douglas opened the scoring with an 8-yard run followed by a two-point conversion. Josh Low added a 2-yard touchdown burst.

But the key to victory came in the third quarter when Rodrigo Negron picked up a Trojans fumble and returned it 45 yards for what Woodworth called the “backbreaker.”

“Our defense was unreal,” Woodworth said of a unit that forced three fumbles and recorded four sacks.

The rain and Yokota's defense hemmed in Adrian Santiago-Cruz and the Trojans. (Zama football)

Chris Jones had Zama's lone points on a 65-yard touchdown pass. (Zama football)

Zama’s lone points came in the first quarter on a 65-yard touchdown pass to Chris Jones from Adrian Santiago-Cruz.

“I told the guys at the start of the season, with the downturn on our roster, the games are going to be tighter and the mistakes are going to be more costly,” Trojans coach Scott Bolin said.

“We had sustained drives and boom. Mistakes. The kids played hard. Just too many costly mistakes. That’s a well-coached (Yokota) team. Crosstown rivalry games are something rare that you get to experience.”

The Trojans finished 4-3 on the season.