Bulldogs Fall to Ave Maria (FL) in Home Opener, 27-14

SEGUIN, Texas -- Texas Lutheran football (1-2) fought hard but dropped their home opening matchup to NAIA opponent Ave Maria (FL) (1-1), 27-14, at Bulldog Stadium.

The Bulldogs would drive down field on their opening drive 65 yards but would come up empty - missing a 28-yard field goal. The Gyrenes would respond with their first touchdown of the night. They would follow up with a field goal to jump out to a 10-0 first quarter lead.

The Bulldogs would get on the board courtesy of a 74-yard drive to start the second quarter as running back Jacob Forton (Spring Branch/Smithson Valley) would score on a two-yard rush. Texas Lutheran would shut the Gyrenes out for the remainder of the half.

Ave Maria would come out in the second half and immediately find the end zone as running back Bryan Stiemke found the end zone for the first of his two touchdowns. Stiemke was the story of the night, rushing for 264 yards for the Gyrenes while adding 66 yards receiving. Ave Maria would add an early fourth quarter field goal to take a 20-7 lead. Forton found the end zone for the second time to shrink the Gyrene lead to 20-14 with nine minutes remaining - leaving the Bulldogs with an opportunity for a comeback victory. Stiemke would rush in for the dagger with two minutes remaining - bringing the game to its final score of 27-14 and spoiling the Texas Lutheran home opener.

Quarterback Seth Cosme finished with a 21-for-33, 252-yard performance through the air. Running back Jacob Forton rushed for a team-high 67 yards for his team-high fifth time. Junior wide receiver Jacob Wallace (Marion/Marion) had a team-high 87 yards receiving on seven receptions.

Defensively, Texas Lutheran was led by Tristan Smith (New Braunfels/Canyon) who finished the afternoon with eight tackles - six solo. Khalen Wilkerson (Killen/Ellison) and Troy Tomaselli (Castroville/Cornerstone Christian) both finished with seven tackles. Christian Monroe (College Station/College Station) finished with six tackles, including a tackle for loss, and a QB hurry. Mason Hardy (Flynn/Normangee) and Jonathan Cooper (Anahuac/Anahuac) each finished with six tackles.

The Bulldogs will take their bye week next week ahead of a road trip to Alpine, Texas, on Saturday, Sept. 30 to take on Sul Ross State in the American Southwest Conference opener. Kickoff is set for 6 PM. All streaming and stat links can be found on tlubulldogs.com.