FBatCSM-Freymond-sack-241026
37
Winner Western Colo. WCU 10-1 , 8-1
7
Colorado Mesa CMU 7-4 , 6-3
Winner
Western Colo. WCU
10-1 , 8-1
37
Final
7
Colorado Mesa CMU
7-4 , 6-3
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
WCU Western Colo. 7 10 20 0 37
CMU Colorado Mesa 0 0 7 0 7

Game Recap: Football | | Gregg Petcoff

Succeeding When Others Faltered

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.  Ranked 10th nationally and No. 5 in Super Region Four, Western Colorado football took care of business on the final day of the regular season — with a 37-7 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference win Saturday over host Colorado Mesa University –– while the Nos. 2 and 3 teams in the region suffered defeats. 
On a day in which the Mountaineers' Ricky Freymond set the program record for career sacks (22.5), Western put points on the board four different ways. 

JUST THE FACTS 
Final score: Western def. Mesa, 37-7 
Records: Western 10-1 overall (8-1 RMAC), Mesa 7-4 (6-3) 
Location: Ralph Stocker Stadium, Grand Junction, Colo. 
HOW IT HAPPENED 
  • It didn't take long for the Mountaineers to get rolling, scoring on 64-yard Drew Nash to Josiah Ayon connection on its fourth play from scrimmage. 
  • As the game passed from first to second quarter, Western was driving again, this time ending with a 62-yard touchdown pass by Nash to Victory David. 
  • After a missed Mavericks field goal, the Mountaineers marched downfield on a 15-play drive that ended with a 35-yard field goal by Adam Tasei –– scoring method number two –– at the horn to take a 17-0 lead into the halftime break. 
  • Jace Perez forced a fumble from Mesa's JaCari Williams on the opening kickoff of the third quarter with Easton Peterson recovering the loose ball at the CMU 24. Three plays later, all rushes by Royce Pao, the Mountaineers were in the end zone again after Pao finished the short drive with a 1-yard run into the end zone –– scoring method number three. 
  • The Mavericks earned a short field on the next kickoff, returning the kick 77 yards to the Western 21, from where they were able to cobble together a short drive to finally get on the scoreboard with a 13-yard scamper by Aiden Taylor. 
  • The Mountaineers were forced to punt on their ensuing possession, a Zac Grable 40-yard punt fair caught by the returner at the Mesa 7 yard line. 
  • The Western defense held the Mavs to six yards in their three downs, forcing a punt by Sullivan Moon from his own end zone. The punt block was on and worked as intended as Blake Kramer blocked Moon's kick and Kylan Wilson picked up the ball near the right sideline and stepped into the end zone for the 1-yard return –– the fourth scoring method. 
  • Linebacker Cy Shope intercepted Mesa's next offensive play, gifting the offense another short field, the 28-yard drive concluding with Mason Claunch's 2-yard rush up the middle for the game's final score. 
TURF NOTES 
  • After Claunch's run put Western up 37-7 and before the third quarter would end, Freymond would set the sacks record on a second and 16 for the Mavs, dropping Mesa quarterback Liu Aumavae for a six yard loss in the quarter's final minute. 
  • Western finished the day with 371 total yards, 156 rushing and 215 passing, to only 272 (76 and 196) by the Mavs. 
  • The Mountaineers' long scores and short fields allowed Mesa to earn the time of possession edge, 31:40 to 28:20, a statistic once again proven to mean little on the scoreboard. Western averaging 6.5 yards per play was more indicative of the final score. 
  • Nash, who gave way to backup Josiah Roy early in the fourth quarter, finished his afternoon with 204 passing yards and 2 touchdown tosses on an 11-for-16 afternoon. He also added 59 rushing yards to Western's offensive totals. 
  • David and Ayon scored on the long TDs from Nash, David's one of two catches on the day and Ayon's TD his one catch. 
  • Freymond finished with a team-high eight tackles, including a sack and another tackle for loss. Corey Scranton registered two of Western's four sacks on the day with Shope getting the other. 
UP NEXT 
  • On Sunday at 4 p.m. MT the NCAA will reveal the Division II playoff bracket with a live Selection Show that can be seen on the NCAA D-II football webpage. 
  • The Mountaineers are expected to move up in the region rankings with their win and Augustana's and Minn.-Mankato's losses. 
  • Region seeds Nos. 2-4 are expected to host first-round playoff games, which will occur on Saturday, Nov. 23. 
    

 
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