An 'all-around' performance propels Mustangs win

SIOUX CITY, Iowa – Seven straight scoring drives and seven consecutive three-and-outs set the tone Saturday in a 70-0 win for the Morningside University football team over Doane.

With the win, the Mustangs are 3-1 overall and 3-0 in the Great Plains Athletic Conference.

"This was an all-around game," Mustangs head coach Steve Ryan said. "There's nothing better that you can really expect out of them."

The Mustangs had the ball first, and needed just 1 minute, 54 seconds to find the end zone. Ryan Cole, who had three rushing touchdowns, earned his first from the Tigers' 12-yard line to put the Mustangs on the board.

Then, at the 10:03 mark, Cole found paydirt a second time from five yards out that ended a four-play, 53-yard drive.

Jaylen Burch joined the scoring party on drive No. 3, as he muscled the ball in from the Tigers' 1-yard line that made it a 21-0 less than 10 minutes into the game.

The first quarter scoring didn't stop there. Drew Sellon caught a 16-yard pass from quarterback Zack Chevalier. The Mustangs led 28-0 at the end of the first quarter.

The Mustangs scored thrice in the second quarter. Chevalier connected with Sellon for six yards to start out that quarter's run with 13:07 left in the half.

Nolan Feller ended Morningside's shortest scoring drive with a 26-yard scamper with 12:01 left in the second quarter. That run ended a two-play, 52-yard drive that elapsed 36 seconds.

Feller's run into the endzone was not only his first TD of the season; it was also his first rushing attempt.

Cole collected his third TD run, also from the 1-yard line. That came at the 6:05 mark remaining in the second quarter. That play ended his team's longest drive in the plays category of the afternoon, 10 for 66 yards.

"The offensive line was incredible today, and they always have been," Cole said. "We've talked all week about being physical. We were clicking on all cylinders and I'm excited for what's to come. It's about putting all the pieces together."

Max Hough, who appeared in two previous games, earned his first TD run of the season with a 36-yard run in the fourth quarter. He led the Mustangs' rushing attack with 76 yards on seven carries.

Trent Lane added the cherry on top with a nine-yard run that put the scoreboard at 69 for the Mustangs.

Tommy Fitzsimmons, by the way, went 10-for-10 in PATs.

As a whole, Morningside had 638 total yards – a season high – and 440 of those came in the air. It's the third time this season the Mustangs put up 500-plus yards.

"We were able to run the ball consistently, and I thought (Chevalier) was spot-on with his passing," Ryan said. "We've got a number of good receivers and he does a good job of spreading the ball around."

Chevalier was 23-for-31 for 415 yards. Woodbury Central High School grad Dallas Kluender completed his lone pass attempt for 25 yards.

Cash Parker also took some snaps in the second half, and threw one pass attempt.

The defense, meanwhile, carried its weight. Among those seven three-and-outs, the Tigers amassed just seven net yards. In one drive, Morningside took the Tigers back to minus-11 yards.

Doane didn't earn its first first down until the 2-minute timeout in the second quarter. Morningside's defense held Doane to 48 total yards on 30 plays in the first 30 minutes.

The Mustangs held Doane to 121 yards, moving the season average to 299.3 ypg. Isaac Pingel led the M'side defense with 12 total tackles. Cade Harriman and Haden Mendel both had seven total tackles.

The Mustangs' 'D' got in on the scoring, too, during the third quarter. Dijion Walls picked off a Doane pass for 18 yards to make it a 56-0 game with 11:09 remaining in the third.

"I liked the fact they came out as fast as they did," Ryan said. "They stayed focus and I was pleased with the way they came out in the second half. You want your guys in those situations to be able to stay locked in and that's what the defense did."