Waxahachie, TX — The Nelson Lions faced off against Oklahoma Panhandle State University at home in Lumpkins Stadium on Saturday. However, the Lions came up just short, falling to the Aggies 35-28 in a hard-fought contest.
The Nelson Lions offense came out firing, scoring touchdowns on its first two offensive drives of the game. Quarterback
Judah Holtzclaw connected with wide receiver
Jermaine Jones on just the second play of the game for a 64-yard touchdown. The Lions followed that up with a six-play drive capped off by a 27-yard touchdown reception from senior wide receiver
Justin Beaudion, giving Nelson a quick 14-0 lead.
However, the Aggies responded with 28 unanswered points, putting the Lions in a difficult position. Nelson did not respond until late in the third quarter, when senior quarterback
Elijah Bowman connected with Beaudion for another touchdown. Bowman entered the game in the third quarter after starting quarterback Holtzclaw suffered an injury.
In the fourth quarter, the Lions made one final push toward a comeback, limiting OPSU to just one touchdown in the final period. Nelson's final offensive drive covered 70 yards over 15 plays and ended with another touchdown pass from Bowman, this time to wide receiver
Gage Rice. The score marked the first touchdown of Rice's collegiate career.
Unfortunately for the Lions, they were unable to get the ball back and attempt to tie the game after failing to recover an onside kick, sealing a 35-28 defeat.
Senior quarterback
Elijah Bowman stepped up after entering the game in relief of Holtzclaw, completing 14 of 22 pass attempts for 114 yards and two touchdowns.
The Lions' receiving corps also had a strong performance, with three receivers recording a touchdown and more than 50 receiving yards. Jones finished with 82 receiving yards and a touchdown, while Beaudion recorded 67 yards and two touchdowns. Rice added 67 receiving yards and a touchdown of his own.
Defensively, linebacker
Xavier Garcia led the way with 10 solo tackles, five assisted tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss. Edge rusher
Micah Smith also made an impact, recording five tackles and the game's lone sack. Leggett continued to be a force on defense as well, finishing with five solo tackles and three assisted tackles.
The loss drops Nelson to 1-5 overall and 1-3 in Sooner Athletic Conference play.
Up Next
The Lions will return to action Saturday at 2 p.m. at Lumpkins Stadium, where they will face the undefeated and nationally ranked Louisiana Christian Wildcats.
Nelson University (formerly SAGU) is a private Christian university, established in 1927 by P.C. Nelson. The University is located 30 minutes south of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex in Waxahachie, Texas, and offers more than 70 associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees on campus or online. For more information, visit www.nelson.edu or by calling 1-888-YES-NELSON.
