Football Topples Dakota Wesleyan on Homecoming
Hastings, NE – The Hastings College football team started fast and then the defense did its job in the fourth quarter as the Broncos defeated Dakota Wesleyan 32-13 for its first Homecoming win since 2017 on Saturday afternoon.
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
0 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 13 |
|
|
16 | 7 | 0 | 9 | 32 |
Team Stats
Dakota Wesleyan (SD)
| Game Statistics | Dakota Wesleyan (SD) | Hastings |
|---|---|---|
| Passing Yards | 284 | 210 |
| Rushing Yards | 79 | 179 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 |
| Time of Poss. | 31:24 | 28:36 |
Hastings, NE – The Hastings College football team started fast and then the defense did its job in the fourth quarter as the Broncos defeated Dakota Wesleyan 32-13 for its first Homecoming win since 2017 on Saturday afternoon.
The Bronco offense wasted no time taking just four plays to get on the board as John Zamora connected with Toryian Tubbs for a 32-yard gain on the first play. After two runs, Zamora found a wide open Garrett Esch for a 28-yard touchdown and the early 7-0 lead.
Then the Bronco defense got a big stop by Caden Egr and Harrison Udeh on third and two setting up a Tiger punt on the next possession. The ball would get snapped way over the head of punter Kiel Nelson as he would kick the ball out the back of the end zone as Hastings had an early 9-0 lead after the safety.
After the defense got a stop on downs on DWUs next possession, the Bronco offense went right back to work moving the ball into Dakota Wesleyan territory when Antoine Murphy broke free on the seventh play of the drive galloping 37-yards for the touchdown to make it 16-0.
The score remained 16-0 into the second quarter when Hastings put together its most impressive drive of the game marching 96-yards in 12 plays. The drive was highlighted by a 16-yard run from Brett Simonsen and a 19-yard Zamora to Tubbs connection. But Hastings faced a fourth and nine at the DWU 32 and decided to go for it where Zamora found Ethan Wilborn after the double move making a tackler miss and then dove into the end zone for the TD. Hastings now led 23-0.
The Tigers would find a way to get in the end zone right before half when Connor Drake connected with Kiel Nelson for a touchdown where Hastings led 23-7 at halftime.
With neither team's offense getting anything going in the third quarter, Hastings would add a Jason Bachle 27-yard field goal to go up 26-7 but DWU would not go down without a fight. On its next possession, the Tigers marched 75-yards in eight plays as Jamin Arend scored from two yards out to make it 26-13 with 10:22 to go following the missed two-point conversion.
There was a lingering thought back to last year's homecoming where Jamestown erased an 18-point Bronco lead to upset Hastings but this year, no comeback was going to ruin 2022 Homecoming.
The Broncos would get stopped near midfield and would be forced to punt but Bachle's punt turned perfectly inside the five-yard line and would be downed at the one.
The Tigers were able to drive out to the 42 but on fourth down, Koby Brandenburg picked off his second pass of the game returning it to the DWU 42 and following an unsportsmanlike penalty, Hastings now had the ball at the Tiger 27 looking for one more score to put this game away.
It didn't take long as Zamora found a wide open Esch from 28-yards out for the score and the 32-13 victory.
Hastings finished the game with 389 yards of offense while holding DWU to 363 yards. Zamora finished the game going 15-for-34 for 210 yards and three touchdowns. Simonsen rushed for 99 yards on 26 carries.
Esch led the way at wideout with four catches for 62 yards and two touchdowns.
Paxton Terry led the defense with eight total tackles while Egr finished with seven. Brandenburg and Beasley Ihegworo each finished with six total tackles while Brandburg led the defense with two interceptions.
Hastings improves to 4-1 (3-1) on the year and will be back in action Saturday Oct. 1 as Briar Cliff comes to town with kickoff set for 1:00 pm on Lloyd Wilson Field. This is the first time the football team has been 4-1 since 2007.
