PUEBLO, Colo (KOAA) —
Third-ranked CSU Pueblo mounted a second-half comeback against No. 4 Western Colorado to win 24-17 and claim its third consecutive Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference championship.
The Thunderwolves trailed 17-10 after an uncharacteristic first half. Western strip-sacked Navi Bruzon inside the Pack’s ten-yard line and recovered it. That set up the Mountaineers opening touchdown run to put them ahead 7-0. CSUP answered back with a promising drive but they were only able to get a field goal out of it bringing the score to 7-3 after the opening quarter.
Western’s offense was struggling to move the ball down field but a barrage of defensive penalties helped them get into the red zone. The Mountaineers scored their second and final touchdown of the game, lifting them to a 14-3 lead.
A pulse was found from the Thunderwolves offense as they put together the best drive of the opening half. With less than five minutes to play in the second quarter, CSUP played with tempo. After a couple of plays on the ground, Bruzon had a 25-yard chunk play to Marcellus Honeycutt Jr. He followed that up with a 34-yard touchdown pass to Cedric Mills who made a diving one-handed catch.
Western added a field goal to before the half to take a 17-10 lead, unknowing to the fact that those would be the last points they score in the game.
AJ Merrida scored the only points of the third quarter. Merrida caught a short touchdown pass from Bruzon to even the score at 17. The Thunderwolves attempted to take their first lead of the game late in the third with a field goal but the kick was blocked.
Western hoped to retake the lead on the ensuing drive. The Mountaineers set up for a 53-yard field goal attempt but the kick was wide left and well-short of the uprights. That left the door open for CSUP.
Bruzon found Dedrek Taylor-Akins on a 13-yard pass that DTA turned into a 30-yard gain after picking up 17 after the catch. Honeycutt Jr found the end zone three plays later to put CSUP in front 24-17.
Western had a chance at tying the game late in the fourth quarter. With under two minutes to play in the game, the Mountaineers found themselves inside the red zone. On 3rd and 6 from the CSUP 9-yard line, they took a shot at the end zone but the pass was caught out of bounds. That left them with no choice but to go for it on fourth down.
Hoping to get a new set of downs by getting to the Pack 3-yard line, Western threw just past the sticks but the pass was broken up by Davis Houston. The Pack offense picked up one first down before kneeling out the clock and securing the title.
CSU Pueblo will host a home playoff game next week. The Thunderwolves will find out who they will be playing when the brackets are released on Sunday.
_____
Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching.