LA GRANDE, Ore. – The Eastern Oregon University Mountaineers gave their Homecoming crowd plenty to celebrate Saturday afternoon, rolling past Arizona Christian University 26-6 at Community Stadium. A dominant run game and opportunistic defense fueled EOU's first Frontier Conference win of the season.
Eastern Oregon struck early, capping their second drive with a 13-yard touchdown run. Despite a missed PAT, the Mountaineers controlled the tempo and clock from the outset.
Kicker
Ethan Cutler extended the lead midway through the second quarter with a 20-yard field goal, sending the Mounties into halftime with a 9-0 advantage. The momentum carried into the second half, when
Michael Lenke picked off a pass on Arizona Christian's second possession of the third quarter. EOU capitalized on the turnover with an 11-play drive, capped by a second Cutler field goal and a short touchdown run from quarterback
Elia Kirisimasi, pushing the lead to 16-0.
The Mountaineers struck again early in the fourth quarter. Three ACU penalties helped extend the drive, and a steady mix of runs from
Brody Macmillan and Kirisimasi led to the quarterback's second rushing touchdown of the day. Cutler's extra point made it 23-0.
Arizona Christian struggled to find any rhythm offensively, managing just 191 yards and turning the ball over twice. The Firestorm's lone score came with just under eight minutes left on a 1-yard quarterback sneak from Ty Williams. A failed two-point conversion kept the deficit at 17.
Eastern Oregon dominated time of possession, holding the ball for over 34 minutes while converting 5 of 6 red zone trips. The ground game led the charge, with the Mountaineers piling up 224 rushing yards. Macmillan led the way with 92 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries, while Kirisimasi added 88 yards and two scores. Through the air, Kirisimasi finished 5-for-10 for 90 yards with no turnovers.
Defensively, EOU was stifling—allowing just 82 rushing yards and forcing two turnovers.
Jacobaas Van Ruiten recorded six tackles and a sack,
Justin Douglas added an interception, and
Jared Payne recovered a key fumble late in the game to seal the win.
With the victory, Eastern Oregon improves to 2-3 overall and 1-0 in Frontier Conference play. The Mountaineers will look to keep the momentum going next week as they hit the road to face Southern Oregon. The game is set for Saturday October 18th at 1:00 PM PT.
