UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. — The Saginaw Valley State University football team improved to 4-0 in GLIAC play with a 28-7 victory over Wayne State at Wickes Memorial Stadium on Saturday afternoon. The Cardinals (5-3, 4-0 GLIAC) defense dominated, allowing just 157 yards of total offense, including only 23 rushing yards. The unit also held the Warriors (0-8, 0-4 GLIAC) to 0-for-14 on third downs.

 

I thought we played really good defense today, especially in the first half. Offensively, we had a little bit of a slower start they we had hoped, but we came out in the third quarter with back-to-back touchdown drives, and that really opened the game up," said head coach Ryan Brady. "All in all, it was a hard-fought victory."

 

Meijer Player of the Game Mason McKenzie (Caledonia, Mich. / Caledonia HS) posted his second consecutive 100-yard rushing game (fifth this season). McKenzie rushed 17 times for 118 yards and a season-high three touchdowns. The sophomore quarterback accounted for all four SVSU scores, including a touchdown pass to open the scoring. He finished 18-of-26 passing for 176 yards, totaling 294 yards of offense.

 

Terrence Brown Jr. (Detroit, Mich. / Martin Luther King HS) led Cardinal receivers with seven catches for 41 yards and a touchdown. Michael Jamerson III (Flint, Mich. / Davison HS) added 13 carries for 54 rushing yards.

 

Wayne State opened with a drive to the Cardinal 32-yard line in seven plays, but stalled and settled for a 49-yard field goal attempt. Adom LeDuc (Utica, Mich. / Utica Stevenson HS) blocked the kick, and DJ Voltz (Saginaw, Mich. / Carrollton HS) recovered, giving SVSU possession at 11:54 in the first quarter.

 

Jamerson III advanced the ball with a 16-yard run for a first down at the WSU 32. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty moved SVSU to the 15. Two plays later, on 3rd-and-6 from the 11, McKenzie found Brown for an 11-yard touchdown, capping an eight-play drive at 8:47 of the first quarter for a 7-0 lead.

 

McKenzie ran in his first of three rushing touchdowns with an 11-yard run, doubling the lead to 14-0 with 1:51 left in the half.

 

SVSU regained possession 32 seconds later with a chance to score before halftime, but McKenzie was intercepted, keeping the halftime score unchanged.

 

The Cardinals opened the second half with consecutive scoring drives, extending the lead to 28-0. The first was a quick five-play series capped by McKenzie's 28-yard rushing touchdown.

 

Wayne State's following drive was stopped by LeDuc and Tyree Hill (Ann Arbor, Mich. / Ann Arbor Huron HS), who sacked Wayne State quarterback Justin Cox to force 4th-down and a punt. McKenzie then drove the ball 81 yards on nine plays and scored with a 1-yard run for his third rushing touchdown (4th score overall). McKenzie got things going with a 12-yard strike to Brown for a first down. Later in the drive, he hit Tony Kennedy (Avon, Ind. / Avon HS) deep for a 37-yard reception that pushed the ball to the WSU 21. A pass interference call moved the ball inside the Warrior five, and McKenzie pushed it into the endzone two plays later for the 28-0 lead with 3:52 left in the third stanza.

 

Saginaw Valley State drained the clock with a 12-play, 5:10 drive into the fourth quarter. The drive stalled at the WSU 10-yard line, and a 27-yard field goal attempt missed, keeping the score unchanged.

 

Wayne State responded with a 12-play drive to the Cardinals' 10-yard line. Cox connected with Donovan Isaac for a touchdown, making it 28-7 with 5:10 remaining.

 

The Warriors recovered an onside kick and quickly moved into Cardinal territory. On 4th-and-7 from the SVSU 30, Cox was sacked by Cardinal linebacker Christian Boivin (Traverse City, Mich. / Traverse City West HS), resulting in a turnover on downs. SVSU then ran out the final 4:03 to secure the win.

 

James McDonald (Warren, Mich. / De La Salle HS) and Boivin led the defense with 11 tackles each. This marks McDonald's second straight and third overall double-digit tackle game this season. Boivin also achieved the feat three times and posted a team-high four tackles for loss with two sacks. McDonald added one tackle for loss.

 

Junyoung Chung (Berrien Springs, Mich. / Berrien Springs HS) added seven tackles and one quarterback hurry. Jaden Bevier (Ypsilanti, Mich. / Ypsilanti HS) contributed six tackles, one sack, and one tackle for loss.

 

UP NEXT: The Cardinals travel to the Grand Rapids area next week for a GLIAC matchup against Davenport on Saturday, November 1, at noon (ET).