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Fast Start Pushes
Hardin-Simmons Past Pointers
Box Score
Photo
Gallery
A big first half was too much for the UW-Stevens
Point football team to overcome on Saturday as the Pointers dropped their
season opener to Hardin-Simmons for the second straight year with a 49-17
setback in Abilene, Texas.
The Cowboys scored the game�s first 28 points and
outgained the Pointers 335-74 in the first half to take the commanding lead.
UW-Stevens Point came out strong in the second half, but Hardin-Simmons
added a pair of touchdowns to put the game away.
Surprisingly, the game was
played in cool, breezy conditions with temperatures dipping into the low
70's in the second half.
 Cody Childs
(pictured, left) had a big night for the Pointers with
123 yards rushing on 26 carries for his first career 100-yard game.
�I expected us to play a little bit better
football than we did,� Pointers� coach John Miech said. �A loss is a loss.
The thing is we came to life in the second half and that gave us something
to build on.�
Hardin-Simmons scored on its first three
possessions as Quinton Jones finished off a game-opening 12-play, 78-yard
drive with a four-yard touchdown run. After the Pointers were forced to
punt, the Cowboys went on a six-play, 94-yard drive that was capped by a
33-yard touchdown pass from Jordan Neal to Justin Greene.
The Cowboys had another lengthy drive late in the
first quarter and scored on the first play of the second quarter when Will
Galusha took a screen pass and sprinted 48 yards for a touchdown and a 21-0
lead.
�They got things rolling and we sputtered
offensively in the first quarter,� Pointers� coach John Miech said. �There
were lots of missed tackles tonight, but sometimes that�s what speed does to
you. You know these Texas teams are fast and they showed it tonight.�
The Pointers were stopped on a fourth down later
in the second quarter and Hardin-Simmons converted with a 22-yard touchdown
pass from Neal to Matt Fields with 1:35 left in the first half.
UW-Stevens Point finally got on the board on the
final play of the first half when Jacob Dickert made a sprawling catch in
the corner of the endzone on a fourth down play to cut the halftime deficit
to 28-7.
Hardin-Simmons went ahead 35-7 on Neal�s fourth
touchdown pass � a 17-yarder to Mychal Carrillo with 8:16 left in the third
quarter. The Pointers then showed signs of a comeback, getting a 26-yard run
by Childs and a 28-yard field goal by John Ryan to cut the lead to 35-17
early in the fourth quarter. However, the Cowboys got a long touchdown run
from Jones, who broke several more tackles and sprinted 42 yards for a
score. Justin Feaster added a 20-yard touchdown pass to Henry Woodard for
the final scoring.
Neal finished the night 19-for-27 passing for 291
yards and Jones rushed 13 times for 98 yards for the Cowboys. Hardin-Simmons
outgained the Pointers 482-300 for the game. The physical contest featured a
total of 22 penalties for 247 yards, including nine personal foul penalties.
Brandon Czys (pictured #46, right) made a team-high 12 tackles for
UW-Stevens Point.
�The thing we need to remember is that this was a
non-conference game,� Miech said. �Our goals are to win the conference.
We�ve got a big game coming up at home with La Crosse and we as a coaching
staff and a team need to be ready to play.� |
