WICHITA FALLS, Texas -- Dillon Sterling-Cole passed for 258 yards and Midwestern State overcame a fast start by Western Oregon to roll to a 26-21 win Saturday night at Memorial Stadium.
The Mustangs, who improved to 5-4 overall and to 4-3 in Lone Star Conference play, while Western Oregon dropped to 4-5 and 3-4.
Western Oregon's Omari Dixon-Land broke for a 67-yard run on the opening possession and scored two touchdowns to push the Wolves out to a 14-0 lead.
Dixon-Land finished first quarter rushing for 83 yards on seven carries, but the MSU defense limited the swift senior to 42 yards on 13 carries the remainder of the way.
Sterling-Cole polished off a seven-play, 70-yard drive with an 18-yard strike to freshman
Quinci Jones, who turned a 3-yard crossing route into a touchdown to pull the Mustangs to within 14-7 at the end of the opening quarter.
The Mustangs clawed closer with a 38-yard field goal by
Ritse Vaes with 9:23 to play in the first half before taking the lead when
Isaiah Grant recovered an errant punt snap for a touchdown with 2:20 remaining in the first half to give MSU a 17-14 advantage.
Vaes tacked on a 36-yard field goal midway through the third quarter before
Neiko Hollins capped off a 14-play, 79-yard with a 1-yard scoring plunge with 18 seconds left in the third quarter to give MSU a 26-14 advantage.
Western Oregon fought back to within a possession late in the fourth quarter when Gannon Winker hit Logan Reese for an 8-yard TD with 4:26 to play.
But the Mustangs converted three first downs on the final drive to put the game away.
Senior
Trenton Kennedy paced MSU's rushing attack with 49 yards on 12 carries, while
Peyton Shaw finished with 22 yards on nine carries and
Devin Cross pitched in 21 yards on seven totes.
Sterling-Cole completed passes nine different receivers led by senior
Ja'Marzeyea Arvie made six receptions for 58 yards, while
David Clayton (42 yards) and
Emmanuel Lumanze (39 yards) made four catches each.
Junior linebacker
Quinterrius Hargrave made seven tackles to lead MSU defensive efforts accounting for one of MSU's four turnovers returning an interception for 50 yards.
Senior defensive back
Tre Davis picked off a pass in the end zone, while Grant and
Justin Guillory recovered fumbles on special teams.
Midwestern State takes on Texas A&M-Kingsville Saturday night at Pepsi Field at Javelina Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
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-- MSUMustangs.com --
