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Fort Lewis College Athletics

Scoreboard

31
Winner N.M. Highlands NMH 2-1 , 1-0
17
Fort Lewis FLC 0-3 , 0-1
Winner
N.M. Highlands NMH
2-1 , 1-0
31
Final
17
Fort Lewis FLC
0-3 , 0-1
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
NMH N.M. Highlands 7 10 0 14 31
FLC Fort Lewis 0 3 7 7 17
Cameron Mack vs. New Mexico Highlands - Sep. 16, 2023
Kaitlyn Silva
Cameron Mack carrying a pair of Cowboys defenders across midfield.

Game Recap: Football | | Hayden Mangan, Athletic Communications Assistant

Skyhawks offense surges, but Cowboys emerge victorious in home debut

DURANGO, Colo. – The Skyhawks offense rifled off 343 yards of total offense and pulled within a single score twice, but New Mexico Highlands University proved too difficult to contain as the Cowboys rode off with a 31-17 victory in both teams' Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference opener in front of a crowd of 2,164 at Ray Dennison Memorial Field.
 
Fort Lewis falls to 0-3 on the season and 0-1 in RMAC contests. New Mexico Highlands advances to 2-1 and 1-0 in conference play.
 
"The guys brought a ton of energy into today,, battled back and forth through the momentum, and got to the point where a few different plays go a few different ways and we're victorious in this game," head coach Johnny Cox shared. "You put your heart and soul into it, those guys tried hard, but it just didn't go our way today. This group is resilient, they're learning that, and that resiliency will give us a chance to be successful."
 
Highlands came ready to compete, marching downfield in its opening drive the first score of the afternoon. Fort Lewis couldn't move the ball into NMHU territory on its opening drive, but the Skyhawks were able to force a three-and-out on the Cowboys' second.  
 
Fort Lewis came up empty-handed in its first trip to the red zone and New Mexico Highlands made them pay by taking a 14-0 lead in just under two minutes on the clock. Hunter Villavicencio put FLC on the board with an 18-yard field goal, but a last-minute heave as time expired would come up empty and give the Cowboys a 17-3 lead at halftime.
 
Out of the intermission, the Skyhawks marched downfield leading to Cameron Mack tossing a reverse to Mikal Baker for seven yards, a trip to the endzone, and his first collegiate touchdown. New Mexico Highlands, who came up empty across the third quarter, answered quickly into the fourth quarter with a 15-yard receiving touchdown and the two-score lead.
 
A defensive pass interference bailed the Skyhawks out of a 4th-and-14 situation, and Mack made the Cowboys pay with a three-yard rushing touchdown – the first rushing touchdown of his career – to pull back within seven. Fort Lewis nearly took possession back with a muffed kick that was recovered at the NMHU 35-yard line, but New Mexico Highlands would retain control and march downfield to score the final touchdown of the game.
 
While the Skyhawks put up 343 yards of total offense – extending the team's streak to three-straight games with over 300 yards of total offense for the first time since 2016 – NMHU found the edge with 372 total yards; 210 of which came on the ground.
 
Cowboys quarterback Joey Cave had pinpoint accuracy through the air completing 10 of his 13 passing attempts (76.9%) for 140 yards and one touchdown. Cave was also NMHU's leading rusher with 95 yards on 11 attempts. Shawntay Mills Jr. rushed for a pair of touchdowns and Malik Norman added another. Braden Wingle was 22-for-30 (73.3%) tonight for 199 passing yards while Stone Walker was four-for-nine (44.4%) in his collegiate debut for 59 yards.
 
Neither side gave up a turnover today, but New Mexico Highlands produced just four penalties for 49 yards to Fort Lewis' 11 penalties for 101 yards.
 
Notables
-Fort Lewis has rolled out over 300 yards of total offense in three straight games for the first time since 2016.
-Mack had a hand in both of FLC's touchdowns this afternoon both throwing the reverse and rushing to the endzone himself.
-New Mexico Highlands now leads the all-time series 33-19.
-The Skyhawks have racked up 48 points in three games, equal to as many scored through the first six games of the 2022 season.
 
Next Up
Fort Lewis will make its third road trip of the season next week as the Skyhawks head into Rex Field and Alamosa, Colo., for rivalry week on the home turf of the Adams State University Grizzlies. Slated for a 6:00 p.m. kick-off, the game will mark the second-night contest for FLC this season.
 
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Scoring Summary

Scoring Summary
Scoring Play Visiting Team Score Home Team Score
1st Quarter NMH FLC
NMH
09:57 - NMH - Mills Jr,Shawntay 12 yd run (McDaniel,Will kick), 8 plays, 63 yards, TOP 04:55
7 0
2nd Quarter NMH FLC
NMH
12:20 - NMH - Mills Jr,Shawntay 4 yd run (McDaniel,Will kick), 5 plays, 80 yards, TOP 02:36
14 0
FLC
05:40 - FLC - Villavicencio,Hunter 18 yd field goal 11 plays, 72 yards, TOP 06:40
14 3
NMH
00:28 - NMH - McDaniel,Will 34 yd field goal 10 plays, 63 yards, TOP 05:12
17 3
3rd Quarter NMH FLC
FLC
07:28 - FLC - Baker,Mikal 7 yd run (Villavicencio,Hunter kick), 14 plays, 74 yards, TOP 07:23
17 10
4th Quarter NMH FLC
NMH
13:32 - NMH - Nichols,Teneil 15 yd pass from Cave,Joey (McDaniel,Will kick) 7 plays, 75 yards, TOP 04:02
24 10
FLC
09:19 - FLC - Mack,Cameron 3 yd run (Villavicencio,Hunter kick), 8 plays, 54 yards, TOP 04:03
24 17
NMH
04:01 - NMH - Norman,Mailk 2 yd run (McDaniel,Will kick), 9 plays, 65 yards, TOP 05:07
31 17

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