Football Tops Central Methodist on the Road

Fayette, Mo., (Oct. 28, 2023)- The Missouri Valley College football team traveled to Fayette, Mo., Saturday afternoon for a Heart of America Athletic Conference South Division game against Central Methodist (Mo.).  The Vikings went in front early and defeated the Eagles, 41-31.

Central Methodist received the game's opening kickoff, and moved into Missouri Valley territory.  The drive ended when the MVC defense forced a turnover, as Senior Defensive Lineman Zack Dunham (Orange, Calif.) recovered a fumble at the 32 yard line with three minutes played.  The Vikings followed with a long drive, which featured three third-down conversions.  The eleventh play of the possession was a 13-yard pass completion from Senior Quarterback Tionne Harris (St. Louis, Mo.) to Senior Wide Receiver Dorian Miles (Gwinnett Co., Ga.) for a touchdown.  Junior Kicker Justin Keller (Shawnee, Kan.) added the extra-point, and MVC went on top, 7-0 with just over six minutes to play in the first quarter.

The Eagles responded, and put together a scoring drive, running off seven plays that covered 75 yards to tie the teams at 7-7 with less than three minutes left in the quarter.  The ensuing drive for Missouri Valley lasted in the early moments of the second quarter.  Harris capped off the seven-play, 75-yard drive with an 11 yard touchdown pass to Junior Tight End Markus Stepanoff (Milton, Ontario).  Keller's extra-point moved the team ahead once again, at 14-7.

Central Methodist came back again to cut down the deficit, this time settling for a 37-yard field goal to make it a 14-10 score with less than four minutes played in the second quarter.  The Vikings started their next drive at their own 13 yard line, and nearly had the drive come to an end on a bad snap.  The snap sailed over Harris' head into the end zone, but Harris was able to collect the fumble.  Harris kept the play going, and eventually threw from his own end zone to Junior Khaleel Dampier (Columbia, Mo.), who made his way through the CMU defense for an 83-yard touchdown.  Missouri Valley moved the advantage out to 20-10 with less than 10 minutes to play in the half.

The Viking defense came up with its first three-and-out of the game, helped by a tackle-for-loss from Junior Linebacker Adyn Schwarzer (Burleson, Texas) and Senior Defensive Lineman Ethan Towers (Chicago, Ill.).  However, the ensuing drive for MVC ended in a punt.  Central Methodist took possession inside Missouri Valley territory after a punt return, and drove the short-field for a touchdown to trail 20-17 with just over three minutes remaining in the quarter.  

Missouri Valley had one more possession in the half, and moved close to midfield, but a Harris pass was intercepted.  The Eagles tried to drive late in the half, and converted on a third-down attempt to keep moving down the field.  However, a sack from Schwarzer and Senior Defensive Lineman Ryan Greenwood (Beaumont, Texas) helped in bringing the possession to an end, and the Vikings held a 20-17 lead at halftime.

Play in the second half started with a Missouri Valley drive, which featured a third-and-long conversion on a Harris 10-yard run.  Later in the drive Senior Running Back Jeremiah Bryant (Atwood, Tenn.) finished off a 31-yard rushing attempt for a touchdown and the advantage grew to 27-17 with just over four minutes played.  The two teams traded possessions through much of the third quarter.  Central Methodist lined up for a punt with four minutes to play in the quarter, but Senior Linebacker Gabe Ellefsen (Marshall, Mo.) blocked the punt, and the Vikings took control deep in CMU territory.

The Vikings worked quickly after the special teams play, as Harris completed another touchdown pass to Stepanoff, this time at 19 yards.  Keller added the extra-point, and the advantage sat at 34-17.  After the Missouri Valley defense forced another three-and-out, the ensuing drive resulted in an interception from Harris.  Once again, the Viking defense forced a stop, bringing about another Eagle punt after only three plays.

Missouri Valley started the fourth quarter driving down the field, and capped a four-play, 48-yard drive with a 10-yard touchdown run from Sophomore Wide Receiver Chase Buford (Springfield, Mo.).  The extra-point from Keller made it a 41-17 score just moments into the final quarter.  The Vikings defense again came up with a stop, helped by a sack from Senior Defensive Lineman Christian Harvey (Kansas City, Mo.).  After the teams traded punts, CMU put together a drive midway through and cut into its deficit with a touchdown at 41-24.   Another MVC punt later in the game gave possession back to Central Methodist, which tacked on another touchdown.  The ensuing onside kick was recovered by Missouri Valley, and the Vikings ran out the remaining time on the block to finish a 41-31 win.

Harris finished 20 of 28 passing with 261 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions.  Bryant totaled 53 yards rushing and one touchdown.  Dampier totaled 123 yards receiving on six receptions and one touchdown.  This is the third game Dampier has topped 100-yards receiving.  Stepanoff had three receptions for 45 yards and two touchdowns.  

Junior Defensive Back Bishop Hill (Raleigh, N.C.) led on defense with nine tackles.  Junior Linebacker Eddie Rankin IV (Bay Area, Calif.) and Junior Defensive Back Taylor Hunt (Roxie, Miss.) each had six tackles.  Dunham had four tackles, 1.5 tackles-for-loss and one fumble recovery.  Harvey totaled one sack.  The defense limited Central Methodist to 58 yards rushing.

Keller made five extra-point, while Bridges had an average of 41 yards per punt on three punts.  

Missouri Valley improves to 5-3 overall and 2-1 in the Heart South Division.  Central Methodist drops to 1-8 overall and 0-3 in the division.

Up next, the Viking football team hosts MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.), Nov. 4 at 1 p.m., inside Volney C. Ashford Stadium.

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ABOUT MISSOURI VALLEY COLLEGE

Known for its dynamic, richly diverse, and friendly educational environment, Missouri Valley College offers many opportunities to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Grounded in the liberal arts, undergraduate studies empower students to master interdisciplinary skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based global society. MVC offers over 30 academic programs, study abroad program, extracurricular activities, and a wide variety of sports. The most popular majors include education and business, criminal justice and exercise science. Above all, Valley is committed to student success. For more information, call (660) 831-4000 or visit www.moval.edu.