Box Score Nov. 8, 2014
Box Score |
VERMILLION, S.D.—Western Illinois quarterback Trenton Norvell threw touchdown passes to five different receivers in leading the Fighting Leathernecks to a 44-29 victory against South Dakota Saturday inside the DakotaDome.
The win ends a two-game skid for Western Illinois (4-6, 2-4 MVFC) which has won all three games in the series since becoming Valley foes in 2012. The Coyotes (2-8, 0-6) have lost their last six.
Norvell completed 20 of 28 passes for 287 yards and threw five touchdowns for the first time in his collegiate career. He threw touchdowns of 12, 34, 22, 12 and 17 yards. His 34-yard hook up with Hi-C Scott was on 4th-and-2 and gave Western a 14-0 lead nine minutes into the game. His 17-yard touchdown to Lance Lenoir with 10:32 remaining was the final score of the game.
Western backs J.C. Baker and Devon Moore complimented Norvell to the tune of 216 yards and a score. Baker carried 21 times for 118 yards. Moore had 12 totes for 98 yards. Moore's 18-yard touchdown run on 4th-and-1 midway through the third quarter was a first score of the second half and broke a 23-23 halftime tie. A USD fumble – the only turnover of the game – set up the 39-yard drive.
South Dakota quarterback Kevin Earl completed 20 of 38 passes for 251 yards and two touchdowns. His top target was Eric Shufford, who caught eight passes for 99 yards and gave USD a 20-14 lead with a 21-yard touchdown catch with 5:28 to go in the first half.
Kevin Kintzel blocked the ensuing extra point and Martinez Davis returned the fumble for a defensive two-point conversion for the Leathernecks that made it 20-16.
South Dakota returned the favor when Micheal Lilly blocked a Western Illinois punt with 11 seconds to go in the first half. Miles Bergner immediately came on and kicked a 32-yard field goal that tied the game at 23-23.
Bergner added field goals of 30 and 42 yards in the second half and improved to 16-for-16 on field goal attempts this season. He has made a program record 18 straight field goals dating back to last season.
Three USD running backs combined to rush for 157 yards and a score. Jordan Roberts had 56 yards on eight carries, Jasper Sanders had 55 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries, and Khorey Kilgore added 46 yards on five carries. His 46-yard run early in the fourth quarter led to a field that made it a one-score game, 37-29, with 11:57 to go. It was the Coyotes' longest play from scrimmage this season.
Norvell answered immediately. He threw a 56-yard strike to Scott on the first play of the next series that moved the Leathernecks to the USD 14. Two plays later, Norvell threw a strike to Lenoir in the end zone that made it 44-29.
South Dakota went three-and-out on the ensuing possession and Western erased three minutes before giving it back. The Coyotes moved to midfield, but Kintzel and Jonathon Rollins' sack of Earl on 2nd-and-10 helped stall the Yotes final drive. USD punted with 4:35 left and never got it back.
The Coyotes host Illinois State (8-1, 5-1) in their final home game at 1 p.m. next Saturday.
