Box Score

INDIANOLA, Iowa (uwrfsports.com) - Rance Ashley scored three touchdowns for the Falcons but it was not enough to get the UW-River Falls football team past the Storm of Simpson College on Saturday.

Head Coach Matt Walker said, "Our kids fought hard today. I'm very proud of their effort." 

The first quarter started out slow for both sides but the Falcons would put up a good run at 6:06 putting up 50 yards and getting within the Simpson 21.  Rance Ashley rushed for 9 yards to the River Falls 39 to get the first down for the Falcons.  Simpson got a penalty for pass interference putting the Falcons on the Simpson's 45.  Quarterback Ryan Kusilek completed a pass to Michael Diggins for a 10 yards and a first down on the Simpson 28.  Ashley would again rush seven yards to the Simpson 21 but the Falcons would be held up there.

The second quarter was a different story.  Simpson came out right away with a nine play run that totaled 79 yards. Simpson rushed for 77 yards to get within the River Falls two yard line, before Davey Jergens would finished the run with a two yard touchdown rush. 

The Falcons would answer back right away after a 21 yard eight-play run.  Nick Flesland would then recover a fumbled punt by Ryan Kusilek and put the Falcons on Simpson's two yard line. Rance Ashley rushed in for 2 yards to tie the game up 7-7 with 7:21 remaining on the clock. 

Simpson quarterback, Sammy Sasson, completed a pass to Davey Jergens for a 63 yard touchdown to pull the Storm ahead 14-7. Falcons did not make that last long as they made an eight-play 76 yard run to tie it back up at 5:59.  Highlight of the run was Kusilek's competed pass to Diggins for a 31 yard advance. 
Simpson would score in the top of the fourth quarter and would lead 21-14 in the fourth when Ashley completed his second longest scoring run of the day, a 36-yarder with 8:38 left on the clock.  Ashley's run would tie the game up 21-21.  The Storm were quick to return as Jergens then broke the 21-21 tie with a 56-yard touchdown with 7:17 remaining on the clock. 

"I think there were a couple keys in the game. First, the 3rd down battle hurt us. We could not convert consistently to keep drives alive and when we had a chance to get them off the field we did not execute a few times defensively and allowed them to extend drives," said Walker.  "Second, we lost the field position war in the 2nd half. We lost a big fumble on our first drive in the 2nd half when the score was tied. You could feel the momentum shifting our way and we were wearing out their defense. To turn it over there hurt us. And, we did not punt the ball well. We had a couple big misses in the punt game into the wind that really put our defense in a tough spot. "
The Falcons rushed for a total 142 yards and had three touchdown on the day. Senior quarterback Ryan Kusilek passed 125 yards.  Rance Ashley led the offense with 92 yards and three touchdowns. 

"This is a resilient group that will be ready for our home opener," said Head Coach Walker.  "Ohio State lost their opener last year and went on to win the national championship. This is a tough loss but all of our team goals are still in front of us. "

The Falcons head into a bye weekend and will come back Spetember 19^th for their home opener against the South Dakota Schools of Mines.  Kickoff will be at 7 p.m. following the dedication of the new Smith Stadium at Ramer Field.  Also being honored that evening will be past WIAC Conference Championship teams. 

Video Highlights, courtesy Justin Lund: UWRF vs. Simpson (Week 1) Highlights