Tigers begin three-game home stand with top-ranked Mustangs

Mitchell, S.D.- The Dakota Wesleyan University Tigers return home following two consecutive weeks on the road. The Tigers welcome fellow Great Plains Athletic Conference foe and No. 1 ranked Morningside College to Mitchell, S.D. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. tomorrow at Joe Quintal Field.

 DWU fell on the road last week to Midland University, 52-27 after being tied at 21 heading into the half. After the Tigers were stopped on their first possession, the Warriors drove 79 yards to open up the scoring and take a 7-0 lead in the first quarter. The Tigers quickly responded on the following possession to even the score at seven. The DWU defense set up a six-yard touchdown run thanks to an interception and a 39-yard return to take a 14-7 lead. A few possessions later, Midland scored on a four-yard touchdown pass. The Tigers tied the ballgame heading into the locker rooms but could only muster six points in the second half and could not slow down the Midland attack.

 Last year, the Morningside College Mustangs visited Joe Quintal Field to begin conference action for the 2018 season. The Mustangs took their opening drive down the field and punched the ball into the end-zone to take a 7-0 lead. On the opening drive for the Tigers, they were forced to punt. However, the DWU defense stifled Morningside on the next possession to get the ball back for the offense.

 After the Tigers were forced to punt, Morningside extended its' lead to 14-0. DWU responded with a 39-yard field goal from Tate Gale (Irene, S.D.) to cut the deficit to 14-3 in the first quarter. The Mustangs responded on their ensuing drive to push the lead to 21-3. The Tigers responded with a Daniel Libolt (Chambers, Neb.) 12-yard touchdown reception to chip away at the deficit, making it 21-10 in favor of the Mustangs. Morningside began to pull away in the second quarter, tacking on 24-straight points and extended their lead to 45-10 heading into the break.

 The second half was much of the same as the Tigers could only record three points on a 32-yard field goal by Gale. The Mustangs scored 21 more points in the second half to bring the final score to 66-13. Libolt led the Tiger offense with eight catches for 88 yards and a touchdown, while Spencer Neugebauer (Mitchell, S.D.) added three catches for 54 yards. Eathen Gaulke (Kimball, S.D.) led the defense with eight tackles, while Cody Reichelt (Mitchell, S.D.) tallied seven tackles. 

 About the Series 

 The Mustangs lead the all-time series 27-6-1. The Tigers are winless in their last 15 matchups with Morningside. 

 About the Coaches 

 Ross Cimpl is in his eighth season with the Tigers. In two consecutive seasons, Cimpl led the Tigers to top 20 finishes, just missing out on the playoffs each year.

 Steve Ryan is in his 19^th as the Mustangs head coach. Ryan is the all-time winningest coach in Morningside history, yielding a 170-40 record. 

 About the Morningside Mustangs 

 The Mustangs enter Saturday's matchup as the No. 1 team in the country while boasting a perfect record. Offensively, they are led by quarterback Joe Dolincheck who currently leads the GPAC in total offense per game with 311 yards per game. Arnijae Ponder leads the GPAC in rushing yards per game, averaging 140.8 yards and leads the conference in total touchdowns with 11 on the season. Defensively, they are led by linebacker Jacob Katzer who ranks eighth in the GPAC for tackles per game with 7.5. Their defensive line is anchored by Seth Maitlen and Nicklas Gustav. The two are tied for eighth in the conference with 3.5 sacks on the season.