ST. JOSEPH – No. 6-ranked Northwest Missouri State scored 14 unanswered points late to pull away from upset-minded Griffon Football, 45-35, Thursday night.
 
Missouri Western battled back from an early 14-0 deficit to take its first lead of the season, 35-31, with 12:38 remaining in the game. Northwest answered with an eight-play, 89-yard drive to pull back ahead 38-35. The Griffons' remaining three drives resulted in a punt, interception and another punt, respectively. Northwest scored its final touchdown of the game following the Griffons' third turnover of the night.
 
Northwest took advantage of Griffon mistakes, with four of its seven scores coming off an MWSU turnover or turnover on downs. The Bearcats had two defensive scores, one on MWSU's second play of the game. After Wyatt Steigerwald hit Shamar Griffith for 46 yards on the Griffons' first play from scrimmage, a high snap went over Steigerwald and was picked up by Northwest's Spencer Phillips who then lateraled to Sam Phillips, who then scrambled 43 yards to put Northwest up 7-0. The Bearcats took a 14-0 lead with 5:24 left in the first quarter. MWSU got on the board with some trickery as Steigerwald
hit a wide open Luke Vang for a touchdown on a fake field goal attempt with 3:26 to go in the first quarter.
 
The visitors took a 28-7 lead on a 29-yard interception return for a touchdown by Sam Phillips with 10:35 left in the first half. The Griffon offense got the ball back at their own 1-yard line with 5:14 left in the half and went the distance on a 12-play drive that ended with a two-yard Steigerwald TD run with 28 seconds left in the half to send the teams to halftime with the Griffons trailing 28-14.
 
A Terrance March interception on Northwest's first drive of the second half set up a 23-yard touchdown pass from Steigerwald to Cooper Burton that pulled the Griffs back within seven. Northwest answered with a field goal, but the next two scores were Missouri Western's. Facing a third and goal from the Northwest 28, Steigerwald hit Devon Holmes in the end zone to pull the Griffs within four (31-28). A six-play, 59-yard Missouri Western drive ended with Steigerwald's second rushing touchdown of the game and gave MWSU its first and final lead.
 
NOTABLES

• Steigerwald finished 14-for-28 for 270 yards with three touchdown passes, two rushing scores and two interceptions. He was also sacked three times.
• Had it not been for five negative rushing yards, Markel Smith would have become the first Griffon to eclipse 100-yards rushing against Northwest since Michael Hill in 2012. He ended with 97 yards on 13 carries for a 7.5-yard per carry average in his first action as a Griff.
• Devon Holmes caught five passes for 76 yards and a touchdown
• True freshman returner Trey Vaval returned three kicks for 166 yards, including an 86-yard return that set up the Griffs' first TD of the night. He averaged over 55 yards per kick return.
• Kobe Cummings picked up where he left off, leading the team with 11 tackles
• The Griffon defense limited Northwest to 130 passing yards, but surrendered 230 on the ground
• Missouri Western's 35 points were the most its scored against Northwest since scoring 35 in a 2009 loss at Spratt Stadium
• After leading the nation in red zone offense last year, MWSU started the season by scoring in all five trips inside the 20

 
UP NEXT

• The Griffons travel to No. 11 Fort Hays State next week for a Thursday night game on Sept. 12
• Both teams will enter 0-1 after the Tigers surrendered 14 unanswered points late in their opening game at Central Missouri