The battle for a first win landed in Simon Fraser University’s hands Saturday as both 0-4 teams went head-to-head out at Hansen Stadium.
The Clan of Simon Fraser pulled off a 29-19 win over Dixie State University in a game that started out in Dixie’s favor.
“I told the guys before the game in the locker room they needed to finish plays,” head coach Scott Brumfield said. “But I also just want them to have fun out there.”
Junior quarterback Ben Longshore started his second game and threw the first touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Connor Sklarsky in the first few minutes of play for DSU. But freshman kicker Alex Giordani missed the extra point wide right, only allowing the Storm to grasp six points.
Neither team scored until 12 minutes left in the half, where SFU threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Kyle Kawamoto, bringing Dixie to a one-point deficit. Dixie held SFU on the next drive, forcing it to kick a field goal, putting the Clan ahead 10-6.
Junior defensive back Robert Metz and senior linebacker Garland Munns had a total of four solo tackles, just behind senior defensive back Kendall Prescott with five.
“Defense did a great job fighting all 60 minutes of the game,” said Metz, a business major from Tucson, Arizona. “When things weren’t going well, the guys did a great job to stop the bleeding. Unfortunately things happened and we couldn’t walk away with the win.”
In the third quarter, a pass to senior receiver Dalton Groskreutz was intercepted by SFU for a touchdown, bringing SFU to 17-6 over the Storm. But DSU came right back as senior corner Zac Christian intercepted a ball on the Clan’s 25 yard line.
But the Clan wouldn’t allow their defense to be on the field for more than a down as SFU recovered the ball again. SFU scored two more touchdowns, a safety and a field goal in the next two quarters.
Dixie came back and finally put more points on the board with another two touchdowns. The latter was scored with six minutes left in the game. DSU tried going for a two-point conversion, but failed, bringing the score to 29-19 to end the game.
The Storm match up against Western Oregon University at 2 p.m. on Saturday in Monmouth, Oregon.
