PORTALES, New Mexico -- Midwestern State persevered through multiple delays due to lightning at Steve Loy Family Foundation Stadium and won its conference opener over Eastern New Mexico, 36-15.
The Mustangs marched down field on their opening possession.
Devin Cross capped off a five-play, 77-yard drive with a 10-yard touchdown run.
It was the first of seven scoring drives for the Mustangs, but five of those drives ended with field goals.
Joseph Carlson was 5-for-5 on field goal attempts and set a school record for most made field goals in a game.
Ryan Melton returned an interception 59 yards for a touchdown midway through the third quarter to give the Mustangs a 33-8 lead. Midwestern State scored 20 points off four turnovers.
Eastern New Mexico failed to score on three trips into the red zone and lost two fumbles. Mario Sanchez and Rashad Carter combined to complete 2-of-7 passes for a mere 29 yards and each quarterback threw an interception.
Melton had both interceptions for Midwestern State, and the defense had six tackles for loss during the game.
Midwestern State was outgained by the Greyhounds, 416 yards to 379.
Ja'Calvin Newsome led the ground attack for the Greyhounds with 135 yards on 10 carries, including a 40-yard run. ENMU rushed for 387 yards as a team.
Cross and
Jalen March led the MSU offense, which rushed for 305 yards on 46 carries. Cross gained a career-high 154 yards on 21 carries. March rushed for 132 yards on 15 carries, including a 61-yard run that set up Carlson's second field goal of the first quarter.
Midwestern State established a 16-0 lead in the first half.
Sophomore quarterback
Sean Jastrab completed 9-of-17 passes to seven different MSU receivers for 74 yards, including a 27-yard completion to
Demonte Greene in the fourth quarter as the Mustangs moved 80 yards over 12 plays in a little more than six minutes. Carlson iced the victory with his fifth field goal of the game — a 26-yarder to cap the longest drive of the game.
Eastern New Mexico drove the ball to the MSU 13-yard line on its final possession but turned the ball over on downs.
Midwestern State improved to 2-1 overall and 1-0 in the Lone Star Conference, while ENMU fell to 2-2 and is 0-2 in conference play.
The Mustangs host Family Weekend on Sept. 28 and face UT Permian Basin at Memorial Stadium with kickoff at 7 p.m.
-- MSUMustangs.com --
