tow
Al Case, Ashland Daily Photo
35
Winner Southern Oregon SOU 4-2 , 4-1
34
Rocky Mountain RMC 3-3 , 3-2
Winner
Southern Oregon SOU
4-2 , 4-1
35
Final
34
Rocky Mountain RMC
3-3 , 3-2
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
SOU Southern Oregon 0 14 7 14 35
RMC Rocky Mountain 14 6 14 0 34

Game Recap: Football | | SOU Sports Information

SOU erases No. 25 Rocky's 20-point lead, steals 35-34 win

BILLINGS, Mont. – The 25th-ranked Rocky Mountain Bears walked away from Saturday afternoon's game against No. 9 Southern Oregon in heartbroken disbelief, wondering what happened to their 20-point lead and how they let the Raiders off the ropes.

It's a sensation to which most of the Frontier Conference can relate.

Using three touchdown plays covering a combined 190 yards, the Raiders scored the last 21 points of the game and stole a 35-34 victory at Herb Klindt Field. Sean Tow's 51-yard touchdown with 2:19 left in the third brought them back to life, and touchdown passes of 73 and 66 yards from Jack Singler to Bronsen Ader in the fourth put them over the top on a day when they once appeared to be a lost cause.

SOU (4-2 overall, 4-1 Frontier) dropped Rocky (3-3, 3-2) out of a three-way tie for first place and remained locked up with 10th-ranked Montana Tech, which defeated Montana Western 35-20. Up next, the Raiders get a rematch with Eastern Oregon, which is responsible for their only FC loss, at 6 p.m. Saturday in Ashland.

Four of SOU's five conference games have now been decided by five points or less.

Bears sophomore receiver Prince Shonola was responsible for placing the Raiders in a hole. After Cole Jelinek picked off Singler on the first play from scrimmage of the game, Shonola finished a 55-yard drive with a 6-yard TD catch. Jason Baker's 22-yard interception return made it 14-0 and, after Singler and Chase Cole cut the lead in half with a 22-yard connection, Shonola made it 21-7 with a 95-yard kickoff return – the first against SOU since 2014.

Rocky led 20-14 by halftime, Shonola started the third quarter with a 55-yard TD reception from Chase White, and after a Rocky stop he made a 39-yard catch that led to Mason Shelby's five-yard run and a 34-14 Rocky lead.

Finally, the Raiders came up with answers to Rocky's big plays.

Tow – who delivered his best performance of the season with 16 carries for 115 yards and punched in a four-yard TD before the break – ignited SOU with his 51-yard score, and SOU's defense forced a punt. With 11:08 left in the fourth, Ader grabbed Singler's deep ball from SOU's 27-yard line and trimmed Rocky's advantage to 34-28.

The Bears had a chance to make it a two-score game, sitting at third-and-3 on SOU's 23-yard line, with just over eight minutes left. Instead of setting up a field goal, they tried a reverse and failed to execute, as Kodee Varner's lost the ball and Sean Rogers came up with his fumble.

On the very next play, Singler went over the top to Ader, who went in for the 66-yard score untouched. Marcus Montano's ensuing point-after put the Raiders ahead for good with 7:02 remaining. SOU's defense got the stop it needed, and the offense milked the clock with four first-downs.

Ader finished with six catches for 165 yards, becoming the fifth Raider of the year to accrue 100-plus yards in a game this year, and doing so in the absence of three of SOU's top targets – Zack Davis, Sean McShane and Matt Retzlaff.

Singler completed 19 of 27 passes for 299 yards, three TDs and two interceptions, also hitting Jason Shelley four times for 69 yards. Cole's touchdown catch was the first of his career.

For Rocky, White went 24-of-31 for 251 yards, and Varner rushed 24 times for 115.

Devvon Gage starred for the Raider defense, making 14 tackles, including five for losses, and sharing a sack. Isiah Carter made nine tackles, while Armando Gauger, Sam Woods, Kalan Hoedl and Rogers got in on a sack apiece.

The win was the Raiders' second against a top-25 opponent on the road in conference play since they joined the Frontier in 2012.
 
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