Football Wins Third Straight, Defeats St. Mary 39-20

LEAVENWORTH, KAN. - The No. 18 Sterling College Warriors traveled to the University of St. Mary on Saturday, November 4th to take on the Spires in Leavenworth. A strong first half for Sterling would set the tempo early, as Sterling would go on to defeat St. Mary, 39-20.

Sterling started with the ball to begin the game, going straight to the rushing attack of Aaron Chisolm and Daniel Doriscar. Both running backs would break through for big plays, moving the Warriors down the field on the opening drive. Sterling would move into redzone with just under seven minutes to play in the quarter, but a strong goal line stop by the Spires would keep the Warriors from reaching the endzone. With St. Mary operating on offense from the end zone, the Warrior defense turned up the pressure as Sam Cusack, Kenya Edner, and Ray Winfield each had key stops, forcing the Spires to quickly punt. Sterling would take advantage of the excellent field position, as Eric butler would hit Darryl Terrell for 43 yards, putting the Warriors on the two-yard line. Daniel Doriscar would end the drive for the Warriors with a touchdown, giving the Warriors a 6-0 lead with 5:25 left in the first quarter. On the following drive, St. Mary would start to build their own rhyhtm, moving down the field with the quarter coming to and end. Sterling would get tackles from Adam Douglas, Maurice Rucker, and Kenya Edner as the first quarter would end with Sterling lead St. Mary, 6-0.

In the second quarter, the Spires looked to continue their momentum from the end of the first, but a deflected pass would be intercepted by Lucas Dunbar, as the Warriors would halt the Spires chances at an answer. The Warriors would need three plays to score, as Eric Butler would again connect with Darryl Terrell, this time in the endzone for a 37-yard touchdown, giving Sterling a 13-0 lead with 13:53 left in the second quarter. The defense would again force the Spires to the punt, this time with Nicholas McGrew picking up a sack, along with key tackles by Maurice Rucker and a pass break up by Ray Winfield. The Warriors would again use a limited number of plays on the following offensive drive, as Eric Butler would connect with Greer Chandler for the first down, followed by strong carries from Darryl Terrell and Aaron Chisolm. Butler would then find a Raphael Williams down the field for a 40-yard completion, putting Sterling just outside the redzone. The Warriors would then add another score, this time with Eric Butler hitting Raphael Williams for the 14-yard passing touchdown, giving Sterling a 19-0 lead with 8:57 left to play in the half.

The defense continued to keep the pressure on St. Mary, as a key stop from Koltyn Ratliff and a sack by Dezmon Walker and Dezmond Howard would stop the Spires on 4th Down, giving possession right back to the Warriors. A quick 15-yard rush from Aaron Chisolm, followed by another first down completion from Eric Butler to Greer Chandler, would put Sterling right back into their scoring rhythm. On 3rd Down, Eric Butler would scramble his way through the Spires defense, making his way into the end zone for the 16-yard touchdown, putting the Warriors ahead 26-0 with 5:36 left in the second quarter. St. Mary looked to answer before the end of the half, but strong stops from Dwight Wilkerson, Maurice Rucker and Kenya Edner would hold off the Spires as the Sterling would lead 26-0 at the break.

In the third quarter, St. Mary started their opening drive strong, moving down the field quickly and efficiently against the Warrior defense. The Spires would then score from the 1-yard line to get on the board, making it 26-6 with 11:18 to play in the third quarter. Sterling looked to answer the previous drive with a score of their own, but key stops on defense by the Spires would force the Warriors to punt. St. Mary would come up with a key stop on the Warrior punt, giving the Spires excellent field position. St. Mary then capitalized on the drive, scoring another quick touchdown to make it 26-13 with 7:20 left in the quarter.

St. Mary would kick it short to keep Sterling from making any long returns, but a nice 18-yard return from Mike Merriweather would put Sterling back in a great spot, as the offense looked to answer the Spires offensive surge. St. Mary would get stops on the first two plays of the drive, but Eric Butler would find Jordan Dye for the first down, keeping the Warriors drive alive. Facing a 4th Down situation, the Warriors looked to put the ball in the air to pick up the first down, but another scramble by Eric Butler would result in a 32-yard touchdown, giving Sterling a 32-13 lead with 4:04 left in the third quarter. Trying to add another score before the quarter, St. Mary looked for a strong kick-off return, but Elijah Durrett would force a Spire fumble, as Daniel Bingham would recover for the Warriors. With time running out, neither team would score before the end of the quarter, as Sterling would lead Saint Mary heading into the fourth, 32-13.

Sterling would continue to play well into the fourth quarter, as the Spires looked to jump back into the game. St. Mary would find themselves at the Warrior 21-yard line, looking to get on the board early in the fourth, but Nicholas McGrew would pick off the Spires, giving the ball back to Warriors. Sterling would then move the ball down the field with the rushing attack of Aaron Chisolm and Daniel Doriscar, keeping the Spires on their toes. The Spires would again come up with key stops late in the drive, as the Warriors reached the goal line to make it 4th and 2. However, Sterling would be successful this time, as Darryl Terrell would reach the endzone. Following the extra point from Michael Winstead, the Warriors would take a 39-13 lead with 10:56 left in the game.

The Spires would add another score later in the quarter to make it 39-20, but the Warriors continued to keep the ball moving on offense to run the clock, as well coming up with key stops on defense, including a sack from Charles Booker and a late interception in the endzone from Dwight Wilkerson to keep the Spires from adding another score. In the end, Sterling's strong first half set the tempo early, as the Warriors would defeat the Spires, 39-20.

Eric Butler had another strong game, leading the Warriors with 279 yards of offense, finishing with four touchdowns on the day. Butler threw for 234 yards, finishing 16 or 22 and two touchdowns, while added eight carries for 45 yards and two touchdowns. Aaron Chisolm led the rushing attack for Sterling, racking up a total of 117 yards on 16 carries, while Daniel Doriscar added 39 yards on 13 carries and a touchdown. Darryl Terrell led the Warriors with five receptions, finishing with 53 yards and a touchdown, while Raphael Williams led Sterling with 107 yard receiving on four receptions and a touchdown.

Defensively, Kenya Edner led the way for the Warriors, finishing with nine tackles, while Maurice Rucker was second with six. Ray Winfield and Dwight Wilkerson each collected a pass break up in the game, while Wilkerson, Nicholas McGrew, and Lucas Dunbar all picked up an interception for Sterling. Dezmon Walker led Sterling with 1.5 sacks for 7.5 yards, while Dezmond Howard, Nicholas McGrew, and Charles Booker each had sack for the Warriors.

Sterling improves to 8-2 on the season with a KCAC conference record of 7-1. The Warriors will travel to McPherson, Kan. on Saturday, November 11th to take on the McPherson College Bulldogs in their final game of the season. Kickoff for this game is scheduled for 1 p.m. A win on Saturday for Sterling would give the Warriors the 2017 KCAC Championship and an automatic berth into the 2017 NAIA Football Championship Series.

Be sure to check for news and updates on Sterling Warrior Athletics on Facebook (/SCWarriors), Twitter (@SterlingCSports), and Instagram (sterlingcsports), as well as the hashtag #swordsup. Watch all of the Warriors' live home events on the Sterling College Sports Network.