Saturday
Jamestown 34 Briar Cliff 32
(uj.edu)
Jordan Mann (JR/Bismarck, N.D.) threw for a career-high 245 yards and three touchdowns while the defense forced three turnovers as the University of Jamestown football team won its homecoming game over Briar Cliff 34-32 at Rollie Greeno Field.
Mann threw a 48-yard touchdown pass to Marcus Giles (FR/Blaine, Minn.) to give UJ an early 7-0 lead. On the ensuing drive, Briar Cliff answered with a 73-yard scoring pass from Jacob Diaz to Elijah Brown. The missed extra point made it 7-6.
Josiah Cage (FR/Bloomington, Minn.) broke loose for a 44-yard score as UJ led 14-6 with 4:02 remaining in the first quarter. Not to be outdone, the Chargers replied with another Diaz touchdown pass, this one to Logann Freeman for 40 yards.
Briar Cliff took a 19-14 with just under five minutes before halftime on a halfback pass from Noah Ylagan to Khamren Davenport that covered 56 yards.
Mann found James Hagen (SO/Henderson, Nev.) for a 16-yard scoring play with 1:52 in the half as the Jimmies retook a 21-19 lead.
The Jimmie duo would connect from 21 yards on the opening drive of the second half to push UJ’s lead to 28-19.
Diaz’s fourth touchdown pass of the game, a 28-yarder, went to Brown and brought BCU within 28-26.
Tanner Mathern (SO/Edgeley, N.D.) went in from 16 yards out at 10:34 of the fourth to make it a 34-26 game, but the Chargers would find the end zone one more time on a Diaz to Davenport pass for 14 yards.
Briar Cliff had a chance to take the lead on a 26-yard field goal attempt, but a bad snap prevented the kick from being tried, and Jamestown held on for the win.
Diaz finished 11-of-23 passing for 255 yards. Kwame Johnson added 107 yards on the ground on 15 attempts.
Jimmy Hatch (JR/Sacramento, Calif.) led UJ with 48 yards rushing on 14 carries. Giles, Zach Grismanauskas (FR/Henderson, Nev.), and Liam Huseby (JR/West Fargo, N.D.) each had three catches.
Defensively, Caleb Ellingson (SR/Jamestown, N.D.) made 15 tackles, including 7 solo. Ben Steinolfson (SR/Steele, N.D.) had eight solo tackles and forced a fumble.
Jamestown (2-5 overall, 1-4) GPAC recorded its first-ever GPAC conference win and will have next weekend off before traveling to Dordt (Iowa) October 20. Briar Cliff (4-2, 2-2) hosts Concordia (Neb.) next Saturday.
