Gallery: (10-5-2024) Football vs Ottawa
Plainview – The Pioneers couldn't overcome the Spirit offensive onslaught and fell 42-28 on Saturday afternoon at Bulldog Stadium. The loss puts the Pioneers at 2-2 in Sooner Athletic Conference play and in fifth place in the conference standings with five games to go.
After two scoreless possessions for each team to open the game, Wayland Baptist (2-3, 2-2 SAC) fell behind 7-0 after OUAZ broke off a 50-yard touchdown to open the scoring.
OUAZ struck again to begin the second quarter after a 2-yard touchdown rush put the Pioneers in a 14-0 hole. Wayland Baptist began to fight back after senior quarterback
Davian Guajardo delivered a perfect pass to junior wide receiver
Jasiah Barron for a 21-yard touchdown, making it 14-7, OUAZ.
The Spirit would answer with a 22-yard touchdown pass to increase their lead back to 14 points, 21-7. OUAZ got a defensive stop on the Pioneers and were pushing down the field seeking another touchdown, but Pioneer safety,
Donovan Henry, intercepted a pass on the WBU goal-line to stall the Spirit possession. The Pioneers were unable to capitalize on the interception, which sparked the Spirit into a 6 play, 44-yard possession that ended in a touchdown to give OUAZ a 28-7 lead at the halftime break.
After each team failed to score on their opening possessions of the second half, Pioneer junior running back,
Damon Ford, broke free for a 56-yard touchdown to make it 28-14 and giving the Pioneers some momentum. That momentum would only increase for the Pioneers defensively after freshman cornerback
Charles Bell snagged an interception over a Spirit receiver to give the football back to the Pioneers.
Wayland Baptist followed up the interception with an outstanding offensive drive that resulted in an 11-yard touchdown pass from Guajardo to senior tight end
Tanner Ballew, making it 28-21 with two minutes remaining in the third quarter.
OUAZ would exterminate the Pioneer momentum by scoring 14 unanswered points on their first two possessions of the fourth quarter to push their lead to 42-21. The Pioneers would crack the scoreboard one more time after Guajardo connected with sophomore wide receiver
Dequan Green for a 13-yard touchdown to make it 42-28, OUAZ. OUAZ drained the final seven minutes off the clock to defeat the Pioneers, 42-28.
Despite the tough loss, the Pioneers saw history made Saturday as
Jasiah Barron set the Pioneer record with 15 receptions in today's game. His 15 catches broke the previous program record of 13, and he turned those 15 catches into 156 yards and a touchdown. He made several catches over the top of Sprit defensive backs and gave Guajardo a massive target all afternoon.
Guajardo finished the afternoon completing 23 of his 33 pass attempts for 266 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception. Ford led the Pioneer rushing attack with 66 yards on 10 carries with a touchdown. Green hauled in two catches for 63 yards and a touchdown. Ballew finished with two catches for 25 yards and a touchdown.
Henry led the way defensively for the Pioneers, finishing with 13 tackles and an interception. Brooks had 11 tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss, and an interception. Bell finished with a tackle, an Interception, and a pass break up.
The Pioneers will look to bounce back next week as they travel to Waxahachie, Texas to face the Lions of Nelson University. The Sooner Athletic Conference match-up is set to kick-off at 2:00 P.M.
