ABILENE -- ACU quarterback
Zach Stewart threw for 187 yards and two touchdowns and ran for a score Saturday night as the second-ranked Wildcats rolled past Southeastern Oklahoma State, 33-14, in a Lone Star Conference game at Shotwell Stadium.
The Wildcats' program-record 14th straight regular-season victory pushes them to 4-0 overall and 2-0 in the LSC, while the Savage Storm falls to 2-2 and 1-2. ACU will be back in action next Saturday at Shotwell when it hosts Eastern New Mexico in the LSC South Division opener for both teams.
Stewart threw the first of his two touchdown passes when he hit
Edmund Gates from 14 yards to make it 7-0 with 3:47 left in the first quarter. The 11-play, 81-yard drive capped a sluggish offensive opening quarter for the Wildcats, who saw their first drive end with a missed field goal.
After the ACU defense forced a punt,
Kendrick Johnson returned the ensuing punt 72 yards for a touchdown to make it 14-0 with 25 seconds left in the first quarter. Johnson's punt return was his second return for a touchdown this season.
Stewart capped a four-play, 62-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to make it 21-0 with 12:26 in the first half. Then on ACU's next drive, Stewart hit
Daryl Richardson with a 28-yard touchdown pass to make it 28-0 with 6:25 left in the first half.
Southeastern's offense came to life in the second half under the direction of backup quarterback Justin Pitrucha, who finished the game 24 of 34 for 225 yards and two touchdowns. Both of those TD passes came in the second half as he hit Jerrod Temple with a 16-yard pass in the third quarter and Daniel Nichols with a 7-yard strike in the fourth quarter.
ACU's only second-half points came on a 23-yard field goal by
Ricardo Navarro with 5:51 left in the third quarter, and a
Fred Thompson sack of Pitrucha in the end zone for a safety with 6:19 left in the game.
Richardson finished the game with 91 yards on 17 carries, while Justin Johnson had 32 yards on eight carries. Gates led the Wildcats with 67 yards and one score on three receptions, while
Terrell Woodall and
Dennis Campbell each three catches for 33 and 30 yards, respectively.
