Final Stats
MONTICELLO, Ark. – Two separate lighting delays and a late start due to the weather contributed to SWOSU's 35-28 setback at Arkansas-Monticello on Saturday night at Cotton Boll Stadium
Kickoff was delayed 15 minutes due to the weather, but that didn't stop the Dawgs from getting a quick start. SWOSU needed just six plays to score on their opening drive of the game as
Karltrell Henderson scampered 44 yards down the Bulldogs sideline to score and put the Dawgs up 7-0 with 12:36 to play in the opening quarter. The Bulldogs forced a three-and-out against UAM in their opening drive and threatened to go up two scores until
Kenneth Martey lost a fumble just inside Boll Weevil territory.
The Dawgs kept their 7-0 lead as the game entered the second quarter. UAM missed a short field goal early in the second before the game went into its first of two lightning delays that totaled just over two hours. SWOSU miscues allowed UAM to score and make it 7-6 early in the second, but the Dawgs responded with a touchdown drive capped off with a 27-yard strike from
Marc Evans to
Hunter Dinkines that made it 14-6.
Once the game resumed from the second, longer delay of better than one hour, UAM put together a 13-play drive to tie the game at 14-14 and they returned a partially blocked punt 34 yards for a touchdown to go on top 21-14 at the break.
In the third quarter, UAM upped their lead to 27-14 – again missing an extra point – before Henderson took matters into his own hands and brought the Dawgs back within one score with a 50-yard touchdown run late in the period. UAM scored on the third play of the fourth quarter to put their lead back at two scores, 33-21, but it was again Henderson with the answer for SWOSU as a three-yard scamper, his third of the night made it a 33-28 game with 9:30 to play.
SWOSU's defense got the stop they needed, but they took over at their own seven yard line and suffered a safety when an errant snap got past Evans and into the end zone, adding two points to UAM's score. The Boll Weevils got the ball back with 5:38 to play and bled almost five minutes off the clock before punting it back to SWOSU with just under one minute to play. Evans was hurried on all four of the Dawgs attempts on the ensuing drive and SWOSU turned it over on downs with 21 seconds to play.
For SWOSU, Evans finished 15-for-33 for 153 yards and one touchdown through the air, while Henderson was the work horse with 170 yards and three touchdowns on just 15 carries out of the backfield.
Derrick Styles had a team-high four receptions for 43 yards and
Hunter Dinkines had three receptions, including a touchdown. On defense,
Conner Bays had a team-high 18 tackles, tying the second-most by a Bulldog in the NCAA Division II era and the most since his position coach,
Jonathan Darby, recorded 18 against Texas A&M-Kingsville on October 30, 2010.
The setback drops the Bulldogs to 0-2 on the year – and 0-2 in Great American Conference play – for the first time since 2010. SWOSU is back on the road next weekend, facing Ouachita at 7:00 pm in Arkadelphia.
