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HOME OF NORTHWESTERN RED RAIDERS ATHLETICS
HONORING CHRIST THROUGH EXCELLENCE IN ATHLETICS
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football-midland-recap-2023
42
Winner Northwestern NWC 5-0 , 4
21
Midland MIDLAND 3-3 , 2
Winner
Northwestern NWC
5-0 , 4
42
Final
21
Midland MIDLAND
3-3 , 2
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
NWC Northwestern 0 7 14 21 42
MIDLAND Midland 3 3 0 15 21

Game Recap: Football | | NWC Athletic Communications

Strong Second Half Guides No. 1 Northwestern Past Midland

Offense erupts for five second half touchdowns in the 42-21 road win

FREMONT, Neb. – In a record-breaking afternoon in a steamy hot Fremont, Nebraska, the top-ranked Northwestern College football team (5-0, 4-0 GPAC) set a new program record with 18-straight wins, turning on the pressure in the second half to move past the Midland Warriors (3-3, 2-3 GPAC) and remain unbeaten this season. For the second-straight week, Jalyn Gramstad had 300+ passing yards and Michael Storey had 100+ receiving yards.  
"18-straight wins is awesome! Our players deserve a ton of credit for being focused on playing their best each week," noted head coach Matt McCarty. "Their dedication to being locked in week-to-week is a big part of it."
 
Midland drew first blood in the contest, marching 70 yards in 17 plays down the field. The Red Raider defense would bend in that opening drive, but would not break; forcing the Warriors to settle for a field goal attempt to take the early 3-0 lead.
 
Midway through the second quarter, the Red Raiders would punch the ball in the end zone for the first time as Logan Meyer (Jr., Alvord, Iowa) punched it in from two yards out to cap off a 70-yard drive. It would be the lone score of the first half for the Red Raiders.
 
Midland would convert on a 49-yard field goal before the half. Northwestern would get one more shot to score in the second quarter, following a Cody Moser (Jr., Rock Valley, Iowa) interception near midfield, but nothing would come of it. Northwestern would take the 7-3 lead into the locker room.  
 
"Our guys did a great job of coming out and executing in the second half. We didn't do anything special – we just needed to get back to doing what we do," said McCarty. "I'm proud of how our kids played present and made plays when they needed to."
 
The second half would see the Red Raiders take complete control of the contest. A pair of third quarter touchdowns would extend the NWC lead up to 21-6. Both Konner McQuillan (Sr., Leavenworth, Kan.) and Gramstad (Jr., Lester, Iowa) would find the end zone on the ground.
 
The final quarter of play would see five total touchdowns between the two teams combined, as the heat of the mid-afternoon didn't seem to affect either side. Midland would cut into the Red Raider lead with a 36-yard pick-six, making it 21-14.
 
Northwestern would pull away for good with the next three touchdowns with two of them being 50+ yards from scrimmage. McQuillan would rip off a 66-yard score for his second score of the day, while Meyer would tally his second score from 2 yards out. The final Raider score of the day came when Gramstad found Storey (Sr., Spencer, Iowa) for a 54-yard touchdown pass, making it then 42-14.
 
Midland would punch it in one more time with an explosive play of their own – a 46-yard touchdown pass from Garrison Beach to Tariq Brown, but Northwestern walk out of Fremont with the 42-21 victory to win their seventh-straight game over the Warriors.  
GAME NOTES:
  • NWC set a new program record for consecutive wins in a row, now winners of 18-straight games.
  • Northwestern improves to 43-4 since 2017 when forcing 2+ opponent turnovers.
  • NWC put up 472 yards of offense to Midland's 259.
  • For the second-straight week, Jalyn Gramstad has thrown for 300+ yards with his 22-for-32 and 321 yards.
  • He tossed one touchdown pass and ran for another.
  • Konner McQuillan rushed for 116 yards on 16 carries, averaging 7.3 yards per carry and rushing for two scores.
  • He's now tallied 11 100-yard rushing yard games in his Red Raider career.
  • Michael Storey was electric in the passing game, collecting his second-straight 100-yard receiving game with 141 yards on seven grabs (20.1 average) and one touchdown grab.
  • He's now tallied 12 100-yard receiving games in his career.
  • Austyn Gerard set a new career-highs with his 79 receiving yards on four catches.
  • Ben Kingery led the defense with his nine tackles on the day, Tristan Mulder added six.
  • The Red Raider defense combined for three sacks and four total tackles for loss.
  • Ben Egli and Cody Moser both had interceptions; Moser adds to his team lead with three on the season.
  • The Raiders end the month of September with a 5-0 record and a 27-6 record in the month of September under McCarty.
  • The win marks seven-straight in the series with Midland, improving to 39-12-1 all-time against the Warriors.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Konner McQuillan
Up Next: The Red Raiders will return to Korver Field at De Valois Stadium next week for a clash with the Hastings College Broncos (3-3, 2-3 GPAC) on Homecoming weekend on the campus of Northwestern College. Kickoff is slated for 1:30 p.m.

Don't forget to follow Northwestern College Athletics on Facebook @nwcraiders, Twitter @nwcraiders, and Instagram @nwcraiders! #RaidersStandOut
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