By FHSU SPORTS INFORMATION
MARYVILLE, Mo. – Fort Hays State moved to 2-1 overall and 1-1 in the MIAA with a 32-20 loss at Northwest Missouri State on Saturday evening. The Tigers scored the first 14 points of the game, but saw the Bearcats rally to tie the game by halftime at 17-17. The Bearcats took the lead in the third quarter and never gave it up for their first win of the season, now 1-2 overall and 1-1 in the MIAA.
Fort Hays State scored on its first drive of the game, an 8-play, 75-yard drive capped on a 5-yard run by Shane Watts. After Benyon Williams picked off a pass on NWMSU’s first drive of the game and set up a short 11-yard field for FHSU, Watts cashed in another touchdown three plays later on a 1-yard run.
The Bearcats started to chip away with an 11-play drive to cut the score in half toward the end of the first quarter. Tank Young had a 10-yard touchdown run to get the Bearcats on the board.
Early in the second quarter, Carson Arndt converted a 25-yard field goal to extend the FHSU lead back to 17-7, but the Bearcats answered with a Noah Guastella field goal on the heels of a 14-play drive. The Bearcats rallied late in the half with a 91-yard scoring drive capped on a 5-yard touchdown pass to get the game tied.
The Bearcats had the ball first out of halftime and chewed up the first 7:35 of the half with a 14-play, 75-yard touchdown drive. A 4-yard run by Tank Young gave the Bearcats their first lead. Moments later, the Bearcats created a safety by getting an intentional grounding call in the endzone, extending their lead to 26-17. The Tigers scored their only points of the half on a 44-yard field goal by Arndt in the third quarter, but the Bearcats took full control on their final touchdown early in the fourth quarter. That score created the final margin of 32-20.
FHSU was held to just 245 yards of total offense, which included 213 passing yards by Jack Dawson and 32 rushing yards as a team. Shane Watts led the ground game with 39 yards. Trevor Watts had eight catches for 59 yards, while Jabari Lewis had a team-high 64 receiving yards on just three catches. Makel Williams led the Tiger defense with 12 tackles, while Sam Brandt had nine to go with two interceptions.
Though the Tigers had three interceptions in the game, the Bearcats were still able to muster 411 yards of total offense with 273 passing yards and 138 rushing yards. Chris Ruhnke completed 33-of-41 attempts for all 273 yards through the air. Young had a team-high 57 rushing yards. Luke Mathews led the Bearcats in receiving yards with 62. Holden Zigmant, Shane Fredrickson, and Carter Edwards led NWMSU with six tackles each.
The Tigers return home to face Northeastern State in a non-conference game next weekend in Hays (Sept. 21). The RiverHawks are playing independent this year in football. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Lewis Field Stadium in Hays.