TAHLEQUAH, Okla. - A dominant second-half shutout helped propel the Missouri Western (1-0) football team to a 33-31 comeback victory against the Northeastern State RiverHawks (0-1) at Doc Wadley Stadium.
After NSU struck first on their opening series, Missouri Western quickly responded with a 43-yard touchdown run by Hall. After a
Kienen Gaskin interception, sophomore running back
Jayden Williams scored his first career receiving touchdown, giving the Griffons their first lead at 14-7.
The RiverHawks then proceeded to score 24 unanswered points and went into halftime with a 31-14 advantage. NSU scored 10 first-half points off of three Griffon turnovers.
MWSU started the second half defensively with back-to-back interceptions from
Desmond Green and
Cameron Powell, along with a fumble recovery from Gaskin. In all, NSU turned the ball over on their first four possessions of the second half, and MWSU scored points off of each of those turnovers. The five RiverHawk turnovers resulted in 27 MWSU points.
With 11:29 left in the fourth quarter, the Griffons regained the lead with a 67-yard touchdown from
Brandon Hall after an interception from
Antonio Taylor. The defense stood tall for the remainder of the game to secure the victory. NSU was held to 68 total yards in the second half.
Senior running back
Brandon Hall highlighted a stellar showing from the Griffon offense, which finished with 380 total yards and 251 on the ground. Hall recorded a career-high 185 yards and two touchdowns. Senior receiver
Tyler Carey added a 47-yard rushing score in the second half as well.
Southeastern Oklahoma State transfer
Kane Donovan received the nod at quarterback for Missouri Western. Donovan finished with 129 yards on 19-of-32 passing with a touchdown and two interceptions. His top target, senior
Jonas Bennett, tallied eight catches for 72 yards, while sophomore
Jayden Williams snagged the lone receiving touchdown for MWSU in the first half.
Gaskin led the Griffon defense with two takeaways - an INT in the first half and a fumble recovery in the second. The Griffons forced five turnovers, including four interceptions.
Jaden Brown led the team with 10 tackles, while
Garrett Watson and
Marvin Gant each added a sack.
Missouri Western will return to action next Saturday on the road against the Fort Hays State Tigers. Action from Lewis Field in Hays, Kansas is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
