MITCHELL, SD – The Dakota Wesleyan Tiger football team had their first victory of the season slip away in their home opener, as Mount Marty outlasted them 24-17 in overtime on Saturday September 7th, 2024, at Joe Quintal Field, in the first annual Dakota Railroad Rivalry game.
The Lancers opened up the scoring on a 10-yard TD run by sophomore, Rodney Broadnax, halfway through the 1st quarter to give Mount Marty the early lead at 7-0. The Tigers offense would respond in the second quarter on a methodical 9-play, 63 yard drive that was capped off by a 10-yard TD pass from senior QB, Carter Robinson, to Preston Nedved, which tied the game up at 7-7 with 8:02 left in the first half. After the Lancers were forced to punt on a three-and-out deep in their own territory, the Tigers took advantage of a short field and tacked on a go-ahead 28-yard FG late in the second quarter from, Jaxon Patrick to give Dakota Wesleyan a 10-7 lead just before halftime.
Mount Marty began the second half with the football and was forced to punt after another three-and-out possession, setting up the Tigers in good field position at their own 47. Dakota Wesleyan would add to their lead as they went down the field again and scored on a 1-yard, Kolby Kayser, TD run to finish off a 12-play, 53 yard drive halfway through the 3rd quarter. Mount Marty had their next drive stall at the Dakota Wesleyan 16 yard line and missed a 33-yard field goal attempt that would have made it a one-possession game going into the 4th quarter.
The Tigers were forced to punt on their next possession and Mount Marty would make it a one-possession game on their next drive. The Lancers drove 78 yards down the field in 17 plays and scored on 1-yard TD run by, Malachy Harts, to trim the Tigers lead to 17-14 halfway through the 4th quarter. After a Dakota Wesleyan punt, Mounty Marty QB, Rugby Ryken, had a deep pass down the right sideline intercepted by sophomore cornerback Mikey Hart inside the Tigers 5 yard line with just over a minute to play. It looked like the Tigers were about to seal a win with the Lancers out of timeouts, but Mount Marty forced overtime on a 35-yard Finder FG as time expired after the Tigers turned the ball over on a third down run while trying to run the clock out.
In overtime, the Lancers struck quickly in just two plays as Harts scored again on an 18-yard TD run to give Mount Marty a 24-17 lead. Dakota Wesleyan was unable to answer as they had their drive in overtime stall at the Lancers 15 yard line when a run on 4th and 1 was stopped inches short to seal the win for Mounty Marty.
It was an offensive struggle at times for both teams, but the Lancers outgained the Tigers 167-157 yards on the night and each team had two turnovers. Mount Marty improves to 2-0 on the season, while Dakota Wesleyan falls to 0-2.
Looking Ahead For The Tigers-
The Tigers will face Concordia in more GPAC action next Saturday afternoon at Joe Quintal Field as they try to earn their first win of the season.