STORM LAKE, Iowa (WLCSports.com) – Wisconsin Lutheran College fell 17-6 in non-conference action on Saturday at Buena Vista inside J. Leslie Rollins Stadium. The Beavers built a 17-0 halftime lead and held off a second-half push from the Warriors to secure the win.
Buena Vista (1-1) struck first midway through the opening quarter when Zy Gravitt connected with Johnny Messerly on a 29-yard touchdown strike to cap a four-play, 77-yard drive. The duo hooked up again early in the second quarter, this time from eight yards out, to make it 14-0. Later in the half, BVU marched 82 yards on 12 plays, finishing with a 33-yard Tyler Pennington field goal to extend the lead to 17-0 at the break.
Wisconsin Lutheran (0-2) got on the board in the third quarter with an 11-play, 64-yard march capped by sophomore
Liam Heiges' (Appleton, Wis.) 11-yard touchdown run. The PAT was missed, leaving the score at 17-6, which held for the remainder of the contest.
WLC leaned heavily on its ground game, rushing for 210 yards. Heiges led the way with 146 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries, while freshman
Quincy Rheams (Dallas, Texas) added 50 yards on 13 attempts. Through the air, Rheams completed 11 of 23 passes for 31 yards, with senior
Jamil Gordon (San Marcos, Texas) catching four passes. Defensively, sophomore
Sam Ehlke (Jackson, Wis.) paced the Warriors with 12 tackles, while graduate
Nathan Nevad (Merritt Island, Fla.) added eight stops, including two tackles for loss.
For the Beavers, Gravitt threw for 169 yards and two touchdowns on 9-for-16 passing, with Brett Garcia contributing 38 yards through the air. Messerly was the top target with 130 receiving yards and two scores on four catches. Meven Obregon led Buena Vista's rushing attack with 59 yards on seven attempts. Defensively, Ethan Weirsma recorded 12 tackles, and Drew Volkman added nine. Anthony Domingue and Keaton Bindel each tallied a sack.
WLC returns to Raabe Stadium next Saturday, September 20 for Homecoming and a 6 p.m. conference-opening contest against Concordia Wisconsin (1-1). Live coverage links can be found at WLCSports.com.
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