ROLLA, Mo. — Missouri S&T football lost a close one against the Quincy Hawks in Saturday's Faculty and Staff Appreciation game, falling 34-31 on a last-second field goal from the visitors.
The Miners' started the game strong, forcing a quick punt then scoring on their first offensive possession of the game with a 39-yard touchdown throw from
Eli Scott (Louisville, KY/Eastern) to
Tyler Gioia (Huntington Beach, CA/Edison). S&T continued to accrue points early, getting three more on a 48-yard field goal by
Layne Ryals (Louisburg, KS/Louisburg) in the next drive before
AJ Harris (Wentzville, MO/Lutheran-St. Charles) ran for a touchdown in the second quarter that put the Miners ahead 17-0.
Quincy moved down the field quickly on the following drive, getting their first points of the day on a touchdown run by Collin Parsons. Disaster struck on the Miners next drive when an S&T fumble set the Hawks up in S&T territory with a minute and twenty-five seconds remaining. S&T's defense came through, keeping the Hawks out of the endzone to head into the half up 17-10.
The S&T offense looked to have regained their rhythm at the start of the second half, scoring touchdowns on their first two drive in the third quarter to build a 31-10 lead. The defense came up with a pair of takeaways in S&T territory during the third quarter, with
Kaden Glass (San Antonio, TX/Pieper) forcing a fumble in the red zone and
Devin Dunn (McLean, VA/The Potomac School) picking off Hawks quarterback Braydn Little at the S&T22.
The Hawks' defense stepped up late though, keeping the Miners offense off the field and increasing their offense's opportunities to score. After the Hawks scored to make it 31-17, an errant punt at the start of the fourth quarter set them up with a short field, allowing them to add another touchdown and make it a one-possession game. They got the equalizer two drives later, tying the game with another Parsons touchdown with just over a minute remaining.
A first down penalty put the Miners behind the sticks on the ensuing drive, leading to a punt with 33 seconds left. Quincy took advantage, marching down to the S&T19 to set up a game-winning 36-yard field goal as time expired.
Harris and
Evan Wells (Roxana, IL/Roxana) combined for over 200 yards on the ground, while Gioia accounted for two of S&T's touchdowns with his reception and a pass to
Justis Braden (Liberty, MO/Liberty North). The Miners won the turnover battle for the fifth time this season, getting a fumble recovery from
Kam Richardson (Kirkwood, MO/Kirkwood) and an interception from Dunn.
What's Next
S&T will head to Liberty, Missouri for their final road game of the year as they take on the William Jewell Cardinals at 1 p.m. on October 31.
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