Tigers stumble in GPAC opener

SIOUX CITY, Iowa – The Dakota Wesleyan University football team opened up conference play against Briar Cliff University and lost 47-0 in a Great Plains Athletic Conference matchup Saturday in Sioux City, Iowa.

 The Tigers (1-2, 0-1 GPAC) went three-and-out in their opening possession, giving BCU the ball at the DWU 33-yard line. However, the Chargers (2-1, 0-1 GPAC) could not capitalize on the field position as they missed a 38-yard field goal attempt.

 DWU once again ran three plays on offense before being forced to punt. Three plays later, BCU fumbled the ball and it was recovered by Emmanuel Christopher (Sioux Falls, S.D.). But just two plays later, Kiel Nelson (Mitchell, S.D.) fumbled the ball as BCU recovered it.

 Again, the Chargers could not take advantage of their field position as they missed another field goal, this time from 30 yards out. After neither team scored on their next two possessions, the game headed to the second stanza scoreless.

 The Chargers broke the scoring drought after blocking a Tate Gale (Irene, S.D.) punt and recovered the ball in the end zone. Later in the second quarter, BCU connected on an 18-yard touchdown pass to take a 14-0 lead. With less than five minutes to play in the first half, BCU made its' first field goal of the game from 20 yards out to take a 17-0 lead at halftime.

 The Chargers wasted no time scoring in the second half as they took the opening kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown, extending their lead to 24-0. After five minutes of play in the third quarter, Nelson's pass was tipped, intercepted and returned for a touchdown as BCU handled the Tigers throughout the second half, handing DWU the conference-opening loss.

 Luke Loudenburg (Canova, S.D.) rushed for 54 yards on 16 attempts, while Preston Emerson (Lakeville, Minn.) finished with two receptions for 19 yards. Tyler Wagner (Webster, S.D.) paced the defense with seven tackles and four tackles for loss. Eathen Gaulke (Kimball, S.D.) and Cody Reichelt (Mitchell, S.D.) tallied six tackles each, while Alan Murtic (Phoenix, Ariz.) added four tackles and two tackles for loss. 

 DWU returns home to battle No. 11 Northwestern College in a GPAC showdown at 7 p.m. on Sept. 21 at Joe Quintal Field.