ST. LOUIS – On another scorching hot day in front of over 800 fans, Missouri Baptist gave its supporters a thrilling upset victory. The Spartans rumbled for 252 yards and five rushing scores on the way to a 42-37 win over Saint Ambrose (Iowa), who is sitting just outside the NAIA Top 25 this week.
Missouri Baptist's offense showed a new look in the first quarter than it had in the 2017 season thus far. The Spartans (1-3) put together a big lead to start the game as
Chase Brown found his two top targets early and posted a 14-3 lead just five minutes into the game.
The Spartan signal caller hit
Isaiah King for a 21 yard gain to get things started on the first drive before Kendall Davis put his team on the board. The sophomore from Edwardsville, Ill., scampered into the end zone to make it a 6-0 game. The touchdown also gave Missouri Baptist its first lead of the season. Just minutes later, after a field goal from the Fighting Bees, the Spartans extended the lead.
On the second drive, Brown found his other big target,
D'Ante Cox. The freshman snagged a short pass and turned-on the jets to take the ball 79 yards to the house to give the Spartans a 14-3 lead.
The second turnover of the game and a muffed punt marred the quick start, however, and put the Fighting Bees right back in it.
On fourth and seven, Missouri Baptist was flagged for roughing the kicker, which gave the Fighting Bees a first down and set-up their first touchdown. Justice O'Connor broke through for a 50-yard rush which put his team at first and goal. Quarterback Jake Romani found Baylee Hopps in the end zone for a three-yard touchdown pass to make it 14-10.
On the ensuing Missouri Baptist drive, the Fighting Bees' defense found paydirt. Jake Schramm picked-off
Chase Brown and went 50 yards the other way to give his team the lead, but the advantage was short-lived.
Just prior to the end of the quarter, Devin Griffin made his triumphant return to the field with a 21-yard reception to put the Spartans in great field position at the Saint Ambrose 16-yard line.
Austin Schultz started the second quarter with a touchdown on the first drive of the period to give the Spartans the lead back and the team never relinquished the lead.
Midway through the second quarter, a big play by
Keenan Savage redeemed the linebacker from an earlier muffed punt. Savage returned a Kenny Rowe punt 73 yards to the five-yard line which set-up
Austin Schultz's second score of the game to give the home team a 28-17 lead heading into halftime.
After the half, Saint Ambrose began to pick it up offensively, but thanks to the stout running attack, led by Davis, the Spartans held-on to the upset win.
Savage was outstanding in a game where the leaders were needed to step-up and play their part. The senior finished the game with 13 tackles, eight of them solo, 2.5 tackles for a loss and a forced fumble in the third quarter.
Overall, the day belonged to Davis. The sophomore running back had a career day, rushing for 200 yards and three touchdowns, all career highs. His longest run came on a 64-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, which proved to be the game winner.
Dontrail Johnson put icing on the cake late in the contest. The linebacker intercepted a Jake Romani pass with under 10 seconds left to seal the win for Missouri Baptist.
With the win, the Spartans will exit their three-game home stand 1-2, but will have an opportunity to make-up some ground in the MidStates Mideast Division in the coming weeks. Missouri Baptist will head to Siena Heights (Mich.) next weekend before returning back to the Metro Area for a date with the Lindenwood-Belleville (Lynx).
