Football Falls To SVSU 35-14

OVERVIEW – SAGINAW VALLEY
SCORE: No. 23 Saginaw Valley State Cardinals 35, Northwood Timberwolves 14
RECORDS: Northwood (2-1), Saginaw Valley (3-0)
LOCATION: Hantz Field – Midland, Mich.
RECAP: Northwood drops first game of the season to rival Saginaw Valley 35-14 in the annual Axe Bowl Saturday (September 17).

INSIDE THE GAME

• The Timberwolves began the game with a 38-yard kickoff return by Bryan Kinley, setting Northwood up on their own 43. An interception ended the drive, giving the Cardinals the ball at the SV 43.
• The Cardinals wasted no time, driving 57 yards in four plays to take the 7-0 lead less than three minutes into the contest.
• A 43-yard punt from Matt Paul set the Cardinals up on their own 11-yard line. The defense was able to hold Saginaw Valley in convincing fashion, forcing 4^th and 15 at their own 6-yard line. The Cardinal punt from the endzone allowed the Timberwolves to start their drive on the SVSU 35. NU then wasted no time as John Hall made a leaping catch over double coverage in the endzone for the 35-yard touchdown pass from Nate Gomez. Max Gonos added an extra point to even the score at 7-7 with five minutes to go in the first quarter.
• The Timberwolves were able to travel 94 yards down the field, using a 37-yard pass brought down with another leaping catch from Hall. NU traveled all the way to the one-yard line but were unable to convert as the drive resulted in a turnover on downs.
• With just over two minutes to go into the half, SVSU put together a five-play, 62-yard drive resulting in a touchdown. The successful extra point attempt gave Saginaw Valley the 14-7 advantage.
• The Cardinals 39-yard field goal attempt to end the half was unsuccessful, as the score remained 14-7 going into the break.
• Saginaw Valley extended their lead to 21-7 begin the second half. Facing 3^rd and 15, the Cardinals capped a 73-yard drive with a 53-yard touchdown with 12:34 to go in the third quarter.
• The Northwood defense came up big late in the third, forcing the turnover to regain possession. SVSU found themselves on the Northwood 27 before Mahlon Slaughter forced the fumble, which was then picked up by Brock Cook. The Northwood offense got all the way to the SVSU 8-yard line but were held by the Saginaw Valley defense as the 25-yard field goal attempt was no good.
• A 61-yard rushing touchdown for SVSU extended their advantage to 28-7 with 13:40 to play.
• With 6:20 remaining in the game, a 32-yard rushing touchdown pushed the Cardinal lead to 35-7 to make it 28 unanswered points for Saginaw Valley.
• The Timberwolves were able to find the endzone for the second time with just over a minute left in the contest. Ethan Whitey finished the 77-yard drive with a two-yard rushing touchdown.
• That proved to be the final scoring play of the contest as the Timberwolves fell to the Cardinals 35-14.

GAME STATS

• FIRST DOWNS: Northwood 14, Saginaw Valley 27
• RUSHES-YARDS: Northwood 30-25, Saginaw Valley 48-288
• PASSING YARDS: Northwood 255 (17-31, TD, INT), Saginaw Valley 248 (17-23, 2 TD)
• TOTAL OFFENSE, PLAYS-YARDS: Northwood 61-280, Saginaw Valley 71-536
• TIME OF POSSESSION: Northwood 28:58, Saginaw Valley 31:02

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

• Hall: 93 receiving yards, TD
• Leslie: 86 receiving yards
• Gomez: 17-31, 225 passing yards, TD
• Parrish: 11 tackles
• Slaughter: 9 tackles, 1.5 TFL
• Whitey: TD

UP NEXT

• The Timberwolves will travel to Davenport on Saturday (September 24). Kickoff is set for 2 p.m.