Morningside triumphs over no. 3 Northwestern

Photo by Jonah Gleason, Morningside Sports Information Intern

SIOUX CITY, IOWA – The latest edition of the Morningside-Northwestern rivalry game lived up to its billing as the no. 1 and no. 3 teams in the nation clashed in a week one matchup in Elwood Olsen Stadium. As expected, it came down to the wire, with Northwestern with 4:02 left on the clock, but leaving the Mustangs with the ball and a 30-29 advantage as time expired.

Northwestern was first on the board, as a 26-yard pass found the end zone for the Raiders with 7:22 to play in the first quarter, but Morningside was quick to answer, with Zach Norton taking a pass from Dolincheck down the left sideline and racing to the end zone for 60 yards and the score. 

The Mustangs countered Northwestern's second score, which came shortly before the first quarter expired, with another deep pass, to Michael Payne this time for 44 yards. Chase Carter's second extra point of the night was good, tying the score at 14 all.

On the other side of halftime, Morningside was looking to score on a pass over the middle, when Northwestern picked it off inside of the 10-yard line. The Mustangs' defense made lemonade out of the situation, turning up the pressure and forcing the Raiders deeper into the shadow of their end zone. It was at that point that Morningside's defensive line overwhelmed Northwestern and Isaac Pingel got loose for one of his two sacks on the night, putting a pair on the board via the safety. 

The Mustangs took the safety kick and marched down the field with it, culminating in another six points as Dolincheck found Caleb Schweigart for a 24-yard touchdown pass. Carter knocked in another PAT, giving Morningside a 23-14 lead.

Northwestern answered the Mustangs' touchdown with another score late in the third quarter, making the score 23-21 in favor of the home team and handing Morningside the ball before the final period of play. Morningside's coaching staff orchestrated a series of plays that would chip five minutes off the clock, concluding with a five-yard touchdown run for Ryan Cole, giving the Mustangs a 30-21 advantage with 11:03 left to play.

Both teams stalled on the ensuing drives, with the Raiders getting the ball back with under six minutes on the clock. A race down the field capped with a two-point conversion, closed the gap to 30-29, setting the Morningside faithful on the edges of their seats, with this scene still too fresh on their minds. A quieted crowd hoped silently that the second half of the third quarter's safety would be enough to hold.

Northwestern turned up its defense, in doing so getting called for pass interference to help Morningside move down the field. A second-and-10 pass to Jack Sievert moved the Mustangs to midfield and a fourth down toss to Schweigart gave the Mustangs a new set of downs in Northwestern territory. 

A pair of rushes for Cole were bottled up just beyond the line, but caused the Raiders to use their last two time outs with the clock ticking down to 1:29. Then, on third-and-8, Dolincheck rushed for his long of the game, a 19-yard scamper to get a new set of downs and set the Mustangs up to run the clock until the end of the game.

Dolincheck was 27-for-35 on the day, good for 351 yards and three touchdowns, with one interception. Norton led the receiving corps, with 112 yards  on five catches, including the 60-yard touchdown. Schweigart recorded eight catches for 76 yards, including the 24-yard touchdown, while Austin Johnson recorded seven catches for 74 yards.

Ryan Cole had 16 carries for 56 yards and one touchdown. Dolincheck had five carries for 35 yards.

Pingel led the defense with 11 tackles including two sacks. Lonell Boyd Jr. and Jon Andreasen each had six solo tackles and eight total tackles in the contest. Joshua Miller matched Boyd and Andreasen's total, with three solo tackles and five assists.

The Mustangs are on the road next week, playing another night game at 6 p.m. at no. 21 Dordt University in Sioux Center, Iowa.