LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (BethanySwedes.com) – The Bethany College Swedes Football team took a trip to Leavenworth, Kan. to face off against the University of Saint Mary Spires in the Swedes last road game before divisional play begins.
Bethany had a brilliant start as Josiah Hardrick would take the first play from scrimmage 41 yards to the Spires’ 34-yard line following a touchback. Zamarion Spencer would add 14 more yards on the very next carry to get into the redzone. From there, the drive would stall as Landry Shields would miss Hardrick on a fourth-and-five. On the Spires first possession, the Swedes’ defense would bend, but not break forcing the Spires to attempt a 32-yard field goal attempt which would open the scoring.
The Swedes would go three-and-out before punting the ball to their own 35-yard line, but the defense would step up and the Spires would miss their next field goal attempt wide right. The Bethany offense would begin to pick up a little momentum on the following drive picking up two first downs, but Shields pass would get picked off and returned to Bethany territory. Saint Mary would score on the next play to increase their lead to 9 following a missed extra point attempt.
Following a couple of punts, Bethany would finally jump on the board by way of a Malaki Daniels six-yard rushing touchdown, his first of the year. On the succeeding drive, Khyree Marshall would record his fourth interception in three games to give the Swedes excellent starting field position on the Spires’ 29-yard line. Unfortunately, the Swedes would go three-and-out and miss their field goal attempt from 47 yards out. The rest of the second quarter didn’t go well for the Swedes as they would fumble twice while the Spires would add 7 points to go up 16-7 at halftime.
Both teams would score touchdowns on their opening possessions. The Spires opened the half with the ball, but Josiah Hardrick would take a screen play 70 yards to the house to answer right back. Zamarion Spencer would connect with Dakota Blacklock on a trick play to convert the following two-point conversion cutting the deficit down to seven. Unfortunately, Saint Mary would score twice before Hardrick would score his second touchdown in the fourth quarter, but it would not be enough as the Swedes would fall 35-22.
Landry Shields would draw the start at quarterback before going down to injury and being replaced by Trapper Enzor. Enzor would throw his first touchdown in his first appearance as a Swede. Josiah Hardrick racked up 138 yards from scrimmage (70 receiving, 68 rushing) and two scores to lead the Swedes in both receiving yards and rushing yards.
On defense, Julian Carpenter paced the defense with 13 total tackles. Khyree Marshall would add 8 more tackles and an interception. Dakota Graysonwould also record an interception. Kayson Radke would tally the lone sack for the Swedes.
The ground game did most of the work for Bethany as the team would net 212 yards on the ground compared to 164 through the air. The Swedes would average 5.8 yards per play, but turnovers would play a huge part in the lost with six turnovers (three interceptions, three fumbles).
Up Next…
The Swedes have a huge week coming up as Homecoming approaches this upcoming weekend. The football team will host Ottawa University Saturday, October 5 at 1:00 PM. The KCAC football bye week will follow before divisional play begins October 19.