Kick returner Naoki Maeda returned a punt 74 yards for a touchdown with 38 seconds to play, giving the Lixil Deers a 21-16 comeback victory over the Obic Seagulls on Sunday in the semifinals of the Pearl Bowl tournament.
The Deers advanced to the final for the first time since 2013 and will take on the IBM BigBlue, who beat the Nojima Sagamihara Rise 34-21 in Sunday's later semifinal game at the same venue, on June 13 at Tokyo Dome.
"I always tell my players to not give up until the end of the game whenever we have a chance. It turned out true today," Lixil coach Kiyoyuki Mori said. "Over 30 years of my experience in football, I have never experienced this kind of ending. We kept patient on offense, defense and special teams today. We are confident that we play well in a close game."