Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Turnovers
Time of Poss.
LINCOLN, Neb. - The University of Dubuque Spartans football kicked off their 2022 American Rivers Conference play on the road against the Nebraska Wesleyan Prairiewolves on Saturday and captured their first win of the season 48-34.
In the first half, UD led 19-7 after scoring at 7:03 of the first quarter on a 26 yard pass from Ben Gultig to Za'cameron Brice. Lontrez Duckworth rushed for a five yard score at 1:45 left in the first quarter to give UD the lead 12-0. The host Prairiewolves scored with 13:13 on the clock in the second to slice into the Spartans lead 12-7. UD responded when Gultig found Wade Sheets who broke some tackles as he found the corner of the endzone from 31 yards at 9:25 left in the half to extend the advantage to 19-7 at the break.
Gultig was 14-22 in the opening half for 250 yards in the air and a pair of touchdowns. His two favorite targets were Todd Simmons who grabbed three receptions for 66 yards and Torre Butts Jr. who caught four passes for 64 yards.Kallion Buckner rushed nine times for 41 yards and Duckworth ran six times for 29 yards. Defensively Colton Pedersen led the Spartans with four solos and one assisted tackle.
In the second half, the Spartans used their speed and the arm of Ben Gultig to finish with nearly 600 yards of offense. The Spartans scored 12 points in the first quarter, seven points in the second quarter, 15 points in the third, and 14 points in the fourth. UD rushed for 230 yards and passed for 359 yards, but gave up 140 yards in 14 penalties. UD held the edge in possession time 31:42 to NWU's 28:18.
Gultig finished the day by completing 21-29 for 359 yards and four touchdowns. Butts Jr. led the receiving corp with five receptions for 82 yards, Simmons grabbed four for 81 yards, and Brice had five for 80 yards. Eight Spartans caught a pass in the win. Buckner rushed 15 times for 172 yards (11.5 avg) and Duckworth ran 13 times for 75 yards.
Pedersen led UD with eight solos and two assisted tackles. Dalton Wood had five solos and one assisted tackle and teammate Garrett Hertzfeldt ended with three solos and two assisted tackles. UD compiled four sacks with losses of 28 yards with one each by Hertzfeldt, Ben Rashid, Jesse Darkwa, and Josh Gouskos.
In special teams, Conner Halla punted four times for 104 yards and placed ball inside the 20 twice. Liam Smith kicked off eight times for 419 yards with three touchbacks and was 4-5 in extra points..
The Spartans prepare for the Wartburg College Knights next week on Chalmers Field in Dubuque, Iowa with kick-off slated for 1 p.m.