The Hornets scored a touchdown on 6 of their 8 first-half possessions, propelling them to a 49-21 win over Missouri Southern State last Saturday in front of the Family & Friends Day crowd at Welch Stadium.
“I was pleased with how we came out and started the game in all phases,” said Emporia State head football coach, Garin Higgins.
After forcing a punt on the Lions’ opening drive, the Hornets took four plays to go 48 yards for the score. The drive was capped on a 14-yard touchdown pass from redshirt-sophomore quarterback, Braxton Marstall to senior receiver, Mitchell Foote.
On the ensuing kickoff Kole Schankie, senior linebacker, forced and recovered a fumble, gifting the Hornets the ball at the Lion 16.
Two plays later, junior receiver Morris Williams II ran the ball in for a 13-yard rushing touchdown, giving the Hornets a 14-0 lead in the span of 39 seconds.
“It’s a good feeling on the sideline when the offense is driving the ball and the defense is getting stops,” Schankie said. “It boosts everyone’s confidence.”
Missouri Southern would drive the ball deep into Hornet territory on their next possession before an interception return by Trey Dickerson, senior defensive back, gave ESU possession at their 31-yard line.
With 6:32 remaining, Marstall connected with Foote for his second 14-yard touchdown grab of the day. Marstall would throw another touchdown pass, this time to redshirt-sophomore receiver Justin Brown, increasing the ESU lead to 28-0 with 48 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
The Lions would score on their first drive of the second quarter, closing the gap to 28-7 with 12:15 left in the half, but their defense was unable to keep the Hornets off the scoreboard.
ESU would go on two long scoring drives to close out the half. The first, a 10-play, 75-yard drive, ended with a 5-yard rushing touchdown by sophomore running back Landon Nault. With a minute remaining before halftime, Antonio Brown, senior running back, iced an 89-yard drive and the game with a 2-yard touchdown run.
While the Lions would move the ball better in the second half, their 42-7 disadvantage at halftime proved too much to overcome.
A second short rushing touchdown by Nault with 10:10 left in the third quarter added to ESU’s already large cushion as the Hornets picked up their second win of the season by a final of 49-21.
“The O-line was keeping me protected and that gives me time to look downfield,” said Marstall, who went 26-33 for 279 yards and threw three touchdowns. “We’ve got four great running backs, our receivers are all skilled, and as long as I can get them the ball, they can make the plays.”
Although he stressed a lack of focus in the second half, Higgins was altogether encouraged by his team’s performance.
“We played well on special teams and the defense gave us a short field,” Higgins said. “We came out with the same intensity we’ve been doing the last two weeks, and offensively we built off what we did last week except we were able to put some touchdowns on the board today.”
The Hornets will look to grab another MIAA win on the road at 1 p.m. Saturday in Warrensburg, Missouri against the Central Missouri Mules.
