EMPORIA STATE FALLS IN DEFENSIVE STRUGGLE 14-13 TO PITTSBURG STATE

September 24, 2022-In a defensive battle between two of the top offensive teams in the MIAA #14 Pittsburg State defeated Emporia State 14-13 on Saturday afternoon on Jones Field at Welch Stadium.

After the Hornets went three and out on the opening possession Pitt State went 72 yards on seven plays to take a 7-0 lead with 11:06 left in the first quarter.  The drive was capped by a four yard pass from Chad Dodson to Bryce Murphy.

Emporia State drove to midfield on the next possession but were forced to punt and the Gorillas took over at their own 16 yard line with 8:30 left in the quarter.  They would drive to the Hornet 13 yard line before attempting a 30 yard field goal.  Cross Holmes attempt was no good to keep it a 7-0 game with 1:38 left in the opening quarter.

The Hornets would get the offense rolling following the missed field goal.  Starting at their own 20 yard line ESU would go 80 yards in 11 plays to tie the game. Braden Gleason hit a wide open Tyler Kahmann at the four yard line and he waltzed in for the touchdown.  Sam Dobbins PAT tied the score with 11:15 left in the half.
 
Emporia State forced the Gorillas to punt on the ensuing possession and took over at their own 20 yard line.  Seven plays later Gleason found Corey Thomas in the back of the end zone and he was able to get one foot down as he caught it for a 25 yard touchdown.  Pitt State challenged the call on the field and it was confirmed to give the Hornets a 13-7 lead. After the review Dobbins PAT was wide left to keep the score 13-7.
 
On the next drive for the Gorillas, they would drive down to the Hornet seven before Montrell Wilson picked off Dodson in the endzone.  He returned it out to the 15 yard line as the Hornets took over with 5:30 left in the half.  ESU drove down to the Pitt State 27 yard line when Antoine Nunn jumped a route and intercepted Gleason for the first time this year at the line of scrimmage.  The Hornet defense forced a three and out but after a 59 yard punt by Dominik Stadlman down to the nine yard line with 42 seconds left, Emporia State took a knee to end the half.
 
Pitt State took the opening kickoff of the second halfand drove 75 yards in 11 plays.  Caleb Lewis went up the middle from a yard out to tie the game and Holmes PAT gave the Gorillas a 14-13 lead with 10:15 left in the third quarter. The Hornets appeared to hold the Gorillas to a 42 field goal by Holmes with 11:19 left but Emporia State was called for leaping on the play. Pitt State elected to take the points off the board  and three plays later Lewis scored the touchdown.
 
Emporia State took the next drive and went 66 yards in nine plays to set up for a 26 yard field goal.  Dobbins attempt missed wide left to keep the score at 14-13 with 7:35 left in the third quarter.  On the ensuing drive for Pitt State Wilson picked off Dodson for the second time in the game, giving Emporia State the ball at their own 48 yard line.   Gleason was sacked on third and eight and the Hornets had to punt back to the Gorillas with 4:42 left in the quarter.

Pittsburg State would convert on two third downs and a fourth down on a 13 play, 58 yard drive that ate up 7:27 off the clock.  Jaedon Pool broke up a fourth and four pass to give the Hornets the ball at their own 30 with 12:15 left in the game.
Emporia State drove 48 yards in 14 plays, converting two fourth downs of their own to set up for a potential go ahead field goal with 8:01 left.  Dobbins missed what would have been a career best tying 39 yard attempt to give the ball back to Pittsburg State.

The Gorillas held onto the ball for the final 8:01, going 50 yards on 13 plays to end the game. They converted a fourth and one from their own 31 yard line with 5:43 left and then took advantage of a defensive holding penalty on an incomplete pass on fourth and two with a 1:10 left to keep the drive alive.

Gleason finished the game 26 of 41 for 233 yards and two touchdowns while adding 32 yards on six rushes.  Corey Thomas had five catches for 50 yards and a touchdown while Cole Schumacher had five for 40 yards.  Tyler Kahmann caught three passes for 42 yards and a touchdown as the different Hornets caught a pass.  Dawson Hammes had 14 tackles with 1.5 tackles for loss while Montrell Wilson had six stops with two interceptions.

The Gorillas held the ball for 37:01 compared to just 22:59 for the Hornets.
 
Emporia State is back in action next Saturday when they travel to Washburn.  Kick-off for the 118^th edition of the Turnpike Tussle is set for 4:00 p.m. at Yaeger Stadium at Moore Bowl in Topeka, Kan.
 
NOTES:
The first quarter interception snapped a sting of 149 pass attempts without an interception to start the season for Gleason and 190 attempts dating back to last season without an interception.
Gleason's two touchdown passes give him 44 in his career and he is just two away from tying Pete Jelovic and Tad Hatfield for fourth all-time at Emporia State.
This was the fourth straight game Emporia State has held their opponents to 21 or fewer points this season, the longest active streak in the MIAA.