Football | 11/12/2011 6:17:00 PM
Box Score Box Score
McPherson, Kan. – The Bulldog defense held the Warriors to just 84 second half yards, as the McPherson College football picked up a 24-17 victory against Sterling College on Saturday afternoon at McPherson Stadium. The contest marked the final regular season game for each team.
With the win, McPherson closes 2011 with a 4-7 overall record, including a 4-5 mark in Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference play, while the Warrior fall to 1-10 overall and 1-8 in the KCAC.
Overall, the MC defense held Sterling to only 272 yards of total offense, while the Bulldogs gained 350 total yards of their own, marking the seventh straight contest McPherson has gained at least 300 yards.
Junior running back
Taurus D'Antignac (Los Angeles, Calif.) and freshman running back
Terrance Jones (Wichita, Kan.) each had career days. D’Antignac led McPherson with 115 yards rushing on 18 carries, including a touchdown, while Jones ran the ball 12 times for 61 yards and two scores.
Junior quarterback
Jake Snodgrass (Derby, Kan.) led the MC aerial game with 119 yards on 12-of-20 passing. With the performance, he finishes the season with 2,094 passing yards to become the sixth Bulldog quarterback in the last 14 seasons to throw for at least 2,000 yards.
After Sterling cut the Bulldog lead to 24-17, McPherson went 3-and-out, giving the ball back to Sterling on their own five-yard line following a 37-yard punt by sophomore
Paul Rotering (Colorado Springs, Colo.). With less than one minute remaining, the Warriors gained a first down out to the 20-yard line, but an incomplete pass and penalty pushed them back to their own 15 with just seconds left on the clock. Junior defensive back
DaMarcus Trotter (Kansas City, Mo.) intercepted the Warriors last chance effort at a Hail Mary.
McPherson opened the scoring on the opening drive of the game when D’Antignac punched home a four-yard score, capping an eight play, 75-yard drive. The touchdown marked the third time this season the Bulldogs have scored on their opening possession. The key play of the drive was a 34-yard reverse pass from senior wide receiver
Chase Ozbun (Rose Hill, Kan.) to senior
Joe Middleton (Phoenix, Ariz.), which gave the Bulldogs first and goal on the Warrior seven-yard line.
The Bulldogs made it a 14-0 first quarter lead two possessions later when Jones scored his first of two touchdowns with a three-yard rush with 6:46 remaining. Jones’ touchdown was setup when senior defensive lineman
Charles Ryan (Los Angeles, Calif.) forced a Warrior fumble that was recovered by fellow lineman
Gerald Oriol (North Port, Fla.) at the Sterling three-yard line.
After holding the Warriors to a 3-and-out, McPherson opened its fourth possession of the quarter at their own 17. The Bulldogs proceeded to march 83 yards on six plays, capped by a Jones 45-yard touchdown run to give MC a 21-0 advantage with 1:53 remaining in the first.
Sterling, however, answered on their next possession with a nine play, 54-yard scoring drive, which cut the Bulldog advantage to 21-7 early in the second quarter.
The Warriors finished the half with their second touchdown on a Bradley Smet eight-yard pass to Matt James to make it a 21-14 Bulldog lead at the half.
Each team would add a field goal in the second half, as the two defenses dug in for the final 30 minutes.
Junior defensive back
Grant Kerschen (Cunningham, Kan.), senior linebacker
Darrick Johnson (Maricopa, Ariz.) and senior linebacker
Wesley Story (Little Elm, Texas), who each posted nine tackles, led the Bulldog defense. Additionally, Ryan finished the contest with six tackles, 3.0 tackles for loss, two sacks and two forced fumbles.
