PITTSBURG, Kan. — Pittsburg State surged past Fort Hays State in the fourth quarter of the MIAA showdown at Carnie Smith Stadium on Saturday (Sept. 20), a 31-16 final. The RV/No. 20 ranked Tigers led 16-10 going into the final frame, but saw the No. 18/10 ranked Gorillas score 21 points late to put both teams at 2-2 overall and 1-1 in the MIAA.
Fort Hays State took a 13-10 lead into halftime with a
David Arriaga 37-yard field goal to end the first half. The Tigers extended their lead with another Arriaga field goal from 29 yards in the third quarter. FHSU kept PSU scoreless on their first four drives of the second half, but the Gorillas swung momentum in their favor with a 78-yard touchdown pass with 8:48 remaining in the fourth quarter. An interception gave PSU just a 37-yard field to produce another touchdown with 4:15 remaining, making it 24-16. Then a fumble recovery set up a 32-yard field for the Gorillas to tack on another touchdown with 1:32 to play.
The Tigers missed out on several potential points early in the game. They took their first drive of the game down to the PSU 2-yardline, but had to settle for an Arriaga 25-yard field goal after a holding penalty thwarted the drive. The Tigers took their second drive into the redzone again, but had a pass intercepted before potentially scoring. However, the defense was solid throughout the first three quarters to keep the Gorillas in check. Down 10-3 in the second quarter, FHSU knotted the score with an 8-yard touchdown pass from
Caleb Heavner to
Joshua Clark. A
Michael Polley interception returned 46 yards set up the go-ahead field goal as time expired in the first half.
The Tiger defense held the Gorillas to just 234 total yards through the first three quarters, but saw the Gorillas put together 155 yards in the fourth quarter. That was the most yards by either team in a quarter during the game. The Tigers still outgained the Gorillas overall in the game 396-389, but the pair of short fields for the Gorillas turned a one-point game into a 15-point final in the final five minutes.
Heavner finished 24-of-39 passing with 215 yards and a touchdown, throwing two interceptions. Jackson Berry was 10-of-22 for the Gorillas for 179 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Donovan Hunt led the Tigers in rushing with 76 yards, followed by Heavner with 51. Cleo Chandler led PSU on the ground with 63 yards.
Ryan Allen had a team-high 55 receiving yards for FHSU, while Greyson Holbert had 121 for PSU.
John Johnson led the FHSU defensive effort with 11 tackles. Steven Ward and Jordan Rogers each had eight for the Gorillas.
Jalen Williams had one sack for FHSU, while Elijah Morton had 1.5 for PSU. Arriaga had another perfect week kicking the ball, going 3-of-3 on field goal attempts and 1-of-1 on PAT tries.
Up next for the Tigers is the annual Homecoming game on Saturday (Sept. 27) at 7 p.m. Fort Hays State plays host to Missouri Western.
