By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
EMPORIA -- Opening week for Washburn University football got off to a rough start when Ichabod starting sophomore quarterback Sam Van Dyne, who passed for 2,002 yards and 15 touchdowns last fall, was ruled out for Thursday night's season-opener and the foreseeable future with a knee injury.
Washburn junior Jordan Finnesy (1) moves in for the tackle on Emporia State quarterback Gunnar Gundy Thursday night. Gundy passed for 292 yards and three touchdowns while Finnesy was in on seven tackles and had an interception in ESU's 30-14 win. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
But the Ichabod defense gave Washburn a chance at an upset when WU held Emporia State without a touchdown until the final play of the third quarter, but the Hornets scored three touchdowns in a span of 8 minutes, 37 seconds to take control in a 30-14 MIAA win at Welch Stadium.
"Defensively, the first half and really the first three quarters, we stiffened when we had to and showed some real toughness and some clutch plays and hit hard,'' Washburn coach Craig Schurig said. "It was good football and then we kind of had some brain lapses in the fourth quarter.
"But we just could never get on track offensively, so we were sputtering around.''
Washburn limited Emporia State, 9-3 a year ago, to just two Caden Dodson field goals -- 29 and 38 yards -- in the opening half and Dodson made it a 9-0 game on Dodson's third field goal of the game at the 12:19 mark of the third quarter after a Washburn turnover.
The Ichabods, looking to bounce back from last fall's 2-9 record, scored the first touchdown of the night with 7:14 left in the third quarter on a 4-yard run from freshman Cam Robinson (Trenton Brehm kick) to cut the Hornets' lead to 9-7, but Emporia State scored the next 21 points of the game to put the game out of reach.
"We had that nice drive and got a touchdown and got it to 9-7 and we felt pretty good but they drove down and scored and we just could never get anything going on offense,'' Schurig said. "We'd have a good play and a bad play and nothing consistent.''
Oklahoma State junior transfer quarterback Gunnar Gundy hit All-American receiver Tyler Kahmann for a 3-yard TD on the final play of the third quarter and hit Ethan Schultze for a 27-yard score with 12:45 remaining and hit Trenden Collins for a 57-yard strike with 6:23 left to put the Hornets in front 30-7. Dodson added the extra point on all three ESU scores.
"We got it done,'' Emporia State coach Garin Higgins said. "We've got a lot of room for improvement, but our kids kept battling and we felt good. Hats off to Washburn. They played their tails off and I knew they would. It was the first game for them, too, as well and it's a good win for our players. I'm proud of them.''
Senior Eli Garnett scored Washburn's second TD on a 1-yard run with 1:53 left (Brehm kick).
Gundy, making his first start for Emporia State, completed 27 of 47 passes for 292 yards and the three TDs and also carried the ball 11 times for 99 yards.
"I think I played good, we've just got to finish,'' Gundy said. "I missed some throws that were key. I think there were a few throws that could have been possible points. I think we executed overall pretty well, but the ball has to finish in the end zone so we need to score points in the red zone and I have no doubt that my guys and coach Higgins will go into this week working on that a lot.
"I think towards the end we executed pretty well.''
Redshirt sophomore Keller Hurla (5) passed for 116 yards in Thursday's 30-14 Washburn season-opening loss to Emporia State. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Washburn redshirt freshman Keller Hurla, who got the start at quarterback in place of Van Dyne, went 14 of 25 passing for 116 yards and redshirt freshman Hayden Clark passed for 33 yards and rushed for a team-high 50 yards on two carries.
Former Highland Park star Tre Richardson caught four passes for 34 yards in his Washburn debut Thursday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Sophomore D.J. Bell had five catches for 27 yards while sophomore Tre Richardson, a former Highland Park star, caught four passes for a team-high 34 yards.
Jaquez White had nine tackles for WU while L.J. Minner had eight stops and Jordan Finessy and Daniel Chavez seven tackles apiece, with Finnesy picking off a pass to stop a Hornet scoring threat late in the first half.
Washburn will have a bye week next week before hosting non-conference foe Colorado School of Mines in the Ichabods' 1 p.m. home opener on Sept. 14.
Emporia State will host Angelo State in a non-conference game on Sept. 7.
EMPORIA STATE 6, WASHBURN 0
Washburn (0-1, 0-1) 0 0 7 0 -- 7
Emporia State (1-0, 1-0) 0 6 10 14 -- 30
Second quarter
Emporia State -- Dodson 29 FG, 7:55
Emporia State -- Dodson 38 FG, 4:45
Third quarter
Emporia State -- Dodson 22 FG, 12:19
Washburn -- Robinson 4 run (Brehm kick), 7:14
Emporia State -- Kahmann 3 pass from Gundy (Dodson kick), 0:00
Fourth quarter
Emporia State -- Schultze 27 pass from Gundy (Dodson kick), 12:45.
Emporia State -- Collins 57 pass from Gundy (Dodson kick), 6:23.
Washburn -- Garnett 1 run (Brehm kick)
