Gomez’s late field goal sends Scots past Lions

The Lyon College football team battled the against odds as the Scots hosted one of the top teams in the Sooner Athletic Conference (SAC) in Southwestern Assemblies of God (SAGU) on a rainy Saturday afternoon at Pioneer Stadium in Batesville. The Scots lived up to the challenge as a 44-yard field goal by Ignacio Gomez with 18 seconds left in the game gave Lyon a 37-34 victory over the visiting Lions.

Lyon improved its record to 3-4 overall and 2-3 with the big win as SAGU dropped to 4-3 overall and 3-2 in the SAC.

Lyon wasted very little time getting the offense rolling as the Scots took the opening kickoff of the game and began to drive down the field. The Scots used six running plays to put themselves inside the red zone. On second down at the SAGU 12-yard line, Spencer Childress lofted a pass up to Emetrious Scott in the corner of the end zone on a fade route for the first score of the game that gave the Scots a 7-0 lead.

SAGU quarterback, CJ Collins, who entered the game leading the SAC in passing yards and was tied for the conference-lead in passing touchdowns, led the Lions down the field on their first possession after the opening score by the Scots. Collins completed 6-of-6 passes on the drive, capped off by a six-yard touchdown to Blayne Rowe knotted the score at 7-7.

The Scots applied some pressure on Collins on SAGU’s next possession as the quarterback lost his handle of the football, which was recovered by Marcus Garza on the Lions’ 36-yard line. After back-to-back carries by Joe Mahe, Childress connected with Jacquez Parker for a 21-yard pass. Another carry by Mahe brought the Scots inside the SAGU 10-yard line before Isaiah Bradford came in for a play at quarterback and scampered into the end zone from six yards out as Lyon regained the lead at 13-7.

The score remained the same with Lyon leading, 13-7, until midway through the second quarter. SAGU opened up the drive with a 21-yard pass from Collins to Jeremy Carr before Michael Bledsoe picked up 17 yards on a carry. SAGU put the ball back into their quarterback’s hands as Collins connected with Samuel Northey for a 32-yard strike that put the Lions at the Scots’ nine-yard line. Collins found Bryant Dotson for a nine-yard touchdown on the next play as SAGU took its first lead of the game at 14-13.

After a punt by the Lions late in the first half, the Scots took back over and gained some momentum back in the game. A pair of personal foul penalties by SAGU assisted the Scots down the field as Childress capped off the drive with an eight-yard touchdown to Dalton Poteet to give Lyon a 20-14 lead at the half.

SAGU opened up the second half with an eight-yard touchdown from Collins to Rowe to overtake the lead once again, but the Lions saw their lead evaporate on the ensuing kickoff. The Lions kept kicking away from Scott all game, but the one time they did, they paid the price. Scott took the kickoff 91 yards virtually untouched to the house as Lyon regained the lead at 27-21.

Lyon added to its lead later in the quarter on a 39-yard touchdown reception by Parker on a pass from Childress.

The Lions worked their way back into the game with 13-unanswered points to knot the score at 34-34, but Gomez’s 44-yard game-winning field goal with 18 seconds left in the game lifted the Scots to the conference win.

Key Stats

– Childress completed 12-of-23 passes for 168 yards with three touchdowns and one interception.

– Parker led the Scots receiving corps as he caught four passes for 87 yards and the one score.

– Sam Taylor led the Scots defensively as he racked up 10-total tackles, including 2.5 tackles-for-loss.

– Gomez is now five points shy of becoming the all-time points leader in Lyon football history.

– Collins completed 30-of-57 passes for 487 yards and five touchdowns for SAGU.

The Lyon College football team will look to knock off the lone remaining undefeated SAC team next week in No. 14 Langston in a road game at 2 p.m. in Langston, Okla.