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| Ashton Gronewold |
After rallying from a 21-point deficit to draw even with Truman State in its season opener, the Miners couldn't hold off the Bulldogs on a fourth down play early in the fourth quarter and then saw its last-ditch effort come up five yards short and fell 38-31 Saturday night at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.
Truman built a 31-10 lead late in the first half, but the Miners rattled off 21 unanswered points to tie the game in the latter stages of the third quarter. But faced with a fourth-and-six at the UMR 36 early i the fourth quarter, Truman quarterback Matt Ticich connected with Tyler Fenton down the middle for the tiebreaking score that proved to be decisive.
The win spoiled big nights by the Miners' Ashton Gronewold and Brad Guidry, who was making his Miner debut at quarterback. Guidry completed 32-of-47 passes for 345 yards and three scores, while Gronewold posted his second-highest all-purpose yardage total of his career with 289 yards in the game, which included 102 yards rushing.
After the Bulldogs took the lead in the first two minutes of the game on Ticich's 17-yard touchdown pass to Ryan King -- following a game-opening 59-yard kickoff return by Phil Kenney -- the Miners answered right back. Gronewold broke the UMR career record for all-purpose the first time he touched the ball, then busted off a 57-yard run on an option play on the Miners' first play from scrimmage to move them deep into Truman territory.
UMR had to settle for a 23-yard field goal from Tim Valencia, then Truman extended its lead when Ticich ran in from 12 yards on the Bulldogs' next trip down the field.
The Miners got their initial touchdown of the season to cap a 10-play, 68-yard drive. Gronewold caught a pass on fourth down to keep the drive going, then Guidry hit Nathan Binder for a six-yard scoring pass three plays later to cut the lead to 14-10.
Truman rattled off 17 straight points to go up 31-10 with 17 seconds left in the half, but Gronewold ran the ensuing kickoff back to the Bulldogs' 44 to give the Miners a shot. Guidry completed a pass to a sliding Binder at the Truman four with two seconds to go, then hit him again in the end zone on the final play of the first half.
The Miners got the ball to open the second half, but after the initial drive ended in a three-and-out, the Miners caught a break when Albert Coker fumbled the ball on the punt return to give it back to UMR at Truman's 36.
Guidry threw an interception on the very next play by Garret Feig -- who had earlier halted a Miner scoring chance with a pick in the end zone -- but Jake Cunningham fumbled the ball right back to UMR on the play that followed.
The Miners cashed that chance in when Jerome Miller plowed in from four yards out to make it 31-23 after Valencia missed the extra point.
After the defense forced the Bulldogs to give up the ball on downs at the UMR 19, Guidry guided a scoring drive where he completed all five of his passes. The final completion of 17 yards to David Shields drew the Miners to within two, then Guidry hit Rolla High product Jake Drallmeier for the two-point conversion to tie the game at 31.
UMR then forced Truman into a fourth down situation outside of field goal range, but Ticich got his pass away before the pass rush arrived and hit Fenton for the go-ahead score 12 seconds into the fourth quarter.
The Miners' next two drives ended with punts, then they got one last shot with 1:39 to go from their own 18. UMR got into Truman territory on a completion to Antonio Williams, then reached the Bulldog 25 with nine seconds to play when Guidry hit Mike Greaving on a sideline route.
After an incompletion, Guidry completed a pass to Gronewold, who first tried to elude the Truman defenders guarding the goal line and then attempted a lateral, only to see the ball get recovered by TSU's Brandon Crawford as time expired.
UMR racked up 510 yards of total offense to Truman's 457 in the contest, getting 165 on the ground and 345 through the air. Guidry completed passes to eight different receivers, with Shields catching five balls and Binder and Williams getting four apiece.
The Bulldogs ran for 306 yards against the Miners with Ticich and Cunningham both finishing with over 100 yards.
The Miners will return to the field Thursday night in Springfield when they take on another old rival from their days in the MIAA, Missouri State. Game time will be at 7 p.m.
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