DURANT, Okla. - DURANT, Okla. – It was a tough afternoon on the gridiron for No. 14 Southern Arkansas as the Muleriders (6-1, 6-1 GAC) suffered their first setback of the season.
They fell 21-0 defeat to Southeastern Oklahoma (5-2, 5-2 GAC) on a rainy Saturday afternoon from Paul Laird Field in Durant, Oklahoma.
Offensively, Southern Arkansas struggled in the first two quarters of play as they mustered just 98 yards on 30 plays and converted only 2-of-9 third-down attempts.
Defensively, the Muleriders allowed just 123 yards in 29 plays with 30 yards coming on the first play from scrimmage. SAU forced reigning GAC Offensive Player of the Week Rollin Kinsaul to toss an interception as Stacy Lawrence picked off a 4th and 1 attempt halfway through the second quarter.
While rainy field conditions forced the teams to focus on the rushing attacks, two of the top rushing defenses in the GAC would not allow the other team to get much traction on the ground as 18 Savage Storm rushing attempts netted just nine yards, while the Muleriders gained 25 yards on 14 carries.
Southeastern Oklahoma opened scoring at the 4:24 mark of the first quarter as Kinsaul connected with Braxton Kincade from 18 yards out for the only points of the first half for either team. That touchdown drive capped an eight play, 98-yard drive for the Savage Storm and began after the Muleriders’ second-consecutive three-and-out to start the game.
Southeastern Oklahoma had an opportunity to push their lead to ten points early on in the third quarter, but Joel Carlos’ 38-yard attempt missed wide left.
The Muleriders started a third quarter drive at the 7:04 mark and appeared to be on their way to tying the ballgame at 7. A 3rd-and-8 pass from redshirt senior quarterback Barrett Renner found a flaring Lorenzo Alexander who scampered 29 yards into SOSU territory. Alexander would push the football down to the Savage Storm 30-yard line on a 19-yard rush two plays later, but Southern Arkansas would be stopped short on a 4th and 4 from the SOSU24 to end the threat and come up empty handed.
The Savage Storm would increase their lead to 14-0 as a seven-play, 68-yard drive was highlighted by a 40-yard completion on 3rd-and-7 that kept the drive alive and put the football down to the SAU15 where SOSU would eventually score.
The Muleriders would answer with a nine-play drive that only covered 20 yards and the ensuing Southeastern Oklahoma possession proved to be the difference in the contest.
With 9:59 to play in the fourth quarter and with a two-touchdown lead, Southeastern Oklahoma engineered a 16-play, 81-yard drive that took 8:53 off of the clock and all but ended the Muleriders’ chances of mounting a comeback.
Southern Arkansas picked up just 13 first downs and totaled 243 yards of offense on 66 plays. Of that 243 yards, 59 of it came on the ground on 28 rushes, while the remaining 184 came through the air on 17 completions.
Each team only turned the football over once as the Muleriders lost a fumble and the Savage Storm threw an interception.
Southeastern Oklahoma converted all three red zone opportunities.
Redshirt junior Jordan White punted nine times for 364 yards at an average of 40.4 yards with a school record long of 78 yards which came on SAU’s second drive of the game. He dropped a pair of punts inside the twenty, while three punts were fair caught. The 78-yard punt is the sixth-longest in GAC history.
Redshirt senior DaVondrick Lison led the defense with 11 total tackles, including five solo stops. He added 1.5 tackles for loss, which encompassed a sack for 11 yards. Lison is now two sacks away from tying the career program record.
Redshirt sophomore Antonio Washington followed with ten tackles and 1.5 for loss, while his brother Anthony added nine stops and a half tackle for loss. Senior Malachi Pointer collected a sack. The Muleriders totaled 7.0 tackles for loss on Saturday.
Alexander totaled 90 all-purpose yards as he was SAU’s leading rusher with 27 yards and added 33 yards receiving on two catches and 30 yards on a pair of kickoff returns.
Senior Darrion Ardoin was the leading receiver with three catches for 52 yards. Eight players caught a pass for SAU on Saturday.
Renner finished 11-of-22 for 102 yards, while sophomore Hayden Mallory went 6-for-16 for 82 yards.
The Muleriders return to Magnolia for homecoming this Saturday from Wilkins Stadium at Rip Powell Field.
Southern Arkansas puts a 15-game home winning streak on the line against East Central. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m.