MORNINGSIDE COLLEGE GA M E DAY - N OV E M B E R 21 , 20 2 0
MUSTANG FOOTBALL
A set of back-to-back home games concludes the 2020 regular season. That span begins this afternoon with Hastings College’s visit to Elwood Olsen Stadium. Head coach Steve Ryan’s Mustangs sport a 7-0 overall and Great Plains Athletic Conference record. The Broncos, coached by Tony Harper, have similar 2-6 records total and in league play. A special celebration is part of today’s contest. The Mustangs football, competitive cheer, competitive dance and marching band programs honor the Class of 2021 members on their rosters.
THE MATCH-UP Morningside has claimed 13 straight in the series. The Maroon has put up 60-or-more points in five of the previous six meetings including a 69-13 victory last year at Hastings.
MUSTANG MARKS Sparked by the play of Week Nine GPAC offensive and Defensive Players of the Week Joe Dolincheck and Niklas Gustav, Morningside closed out its regular-season road slate with an impressive 56-22 win at Concordia University Nov. 7. The Mustangs vaunted offense nearly hit the 700 mark in total offense, finishing with 649 at CU’s Bulldog Stadium. Meanwhile, the defense limited the hosts to only 15 yards rushing and limited them to 12 points over the final three quarters after they posted 10 in the first 15 minutes. A pair of Maroon-clad athletes hit personal milestones, with one being a program record. Gustav, dragging down Concordia quarterback Blake Culbert twice, surpassed former career sacks leader Bob McCabe by moving to 23.5. Reid Jurgensmeier, another member of the Class of 2021, became the second person in school history to reach 50 touchdown receptions, logging his ninth successive 100-yard-plus contest and hauling in two scoring strikes. The Mustangs had a surplus of superlatives beyond that duo. Their junior quarterback threw for better than 400 yards for the second time in his career, going for 442 and three touchdowns; freshman wide receiver Zach Norton and junior wide receiver Jamal Albousafi benefitted along with Jurgensmeier from Dolincheck’s big afternoon, as Norton recorded five catches for 115 yards and a touchdown, and Albousafi tallied 10 for 97; senior running back Arnijae “AP” Ponder crept ever so close to 5000 career rushing yards, moving with 28 with a 157-yard, three-touchdown day. The Mustang defense totaled 11 tackles for Concordia losses to 28 lost yards and turned the home team over once with an interception.