BELTON, Texas – The University of Mary Hardin Baylor football team outlasted Trinity University Texas Saturday afternoon in Belton, earning a 13-3 win over the Tigers. UMHB won the contest with a pair of field goals and a late scoring run in the fourth quarter. The Cru improved to 11-0 on the season while the Tigers ended their 2021 campaign at 9-1.
UMHB's defense forced a punt on Trinity's first possession but a quick turnover from the Cru gave the Tigers the ball back on their 37-yardline. Trinity drove but UMHB's defense held, forcing a fourth-and-eight. Blake Lin nailed a 28-yard field goal to give the Tigers a 3-0 lead with 6:20 left in the first quarter.
Anthony Avila evened the contest with a 42-yard field goal with 59 seconds left in the half.
Keith Gipson gave UMHB the ball back with 20 seconds left, intercepting a Trinity pass but UMHB was unable to convert, sending the game into halftime locked at three.
Both teams battled in the third quarter with UMHB taking its first lead of the game after a 33-yard field goal from
Brandon Cunningham. The Cru held a 6-3 lead until late in the fourth quarter when Cunningham made a field goal but an offside call against Trinity gave the Cru a fourth-and-one opportunity.
Aphonso Thomas broke through on that play, running in 17 yards for the first touchdown of the game. Cunningham's extra-point kick split the uprights, giving UMHB the 13-3 lead with 2:05 left in the contest.
Thomas led UMHB with 118 yards rushing as UMHB totaled 192 in the contest. Quarterback
Kyle King went 10-of-22 for 128 yards while
K.J. Miller led UMHB with five catches for 36 yards. The Cru was 2-for-2 in fourth-down conversions and held the ball for 31:49.
Akeem Jackson led the Cru defense, totaling 11 tackles with 2.5 tackles for loss while
Jacob Mueller added 10 tackles and
Jefferson Fritz totaled six. UMHB limited the Tigers to just 212 total offensive yards.
Keith Gipson and
Titus Dunk both recorded interceptions as UMHB totaled eight pass breakups and eight quarterback hurries.
The Cru will move on to the NCAA Second Round and face Birmingham-Southern on Saturday, November 27
th. The game will be played at 12 p.m. local time. Kickoff location will be announced on Sunday, November 21
st.