James rushes for 138 yards as MSSU posts first win of season, defeating Northeastern State 24-19

(From MSSU Lions Athletic News)

Dalton James rushed for 138 yards and a touchdown and the Missouri Southern defense came up with two huge defensive stops down the stretch as the Lions defeated Northeastern State 24-19 tonight inside Fred G. Hughes Stadium at the Robert W. Plaster Sports Complex.

Southern (1-7, 1-7 MIAA) got 138 yards on 28 carries and a score from James. Sean Kelly rushed for 71 yards on six carries, including a long of 58 and a score, while Shemar Coleman had two carries for nine yards and a score. Kelly went 14-of-22 passing with 97 yards, while Coleman caught four passes for 44 yards in his first start as a slot receiver.

Paul Wolff was 1-for-2 in field goals, but his one make was big, a 44-yarder that gave the Lions' breathing room in the fourth quarter.

Defensively, Justin Legier had 12 tackles, including two for a loss, a break up and a quarterback hurry. Alan Glanville and Desmond Payton both forced fumbles with LaRonzo Davis picking up one of the fumbles, while Korenzo Credit had an interception return for 56 yards that was nearly a pick six.


Southern got on the board with two scores on its first two possessions. After holding NSU (0-8, 0-8) to a three and out on its opening drive, the Lions picked up the ball on the NSU 43 yard line. Kelly hit Cole Dunbar for a pass of 11 yards to start the drive and then James took over. He had carries of ten, two and his final of 18 for a score to put the Lions up 7-0.

After another NSU punt, Southern took over on its own 46-yard line. James rushed to midfield, before Kelly hit Carson Day for a 20-yard strike to put the ball at the NSU 30. James then rushed for six, three and two yards, before rushing again for five yards to put the ball at the NSU 14. Kelly pushed the ball to the eight before Coleman finished off the drive with an 8-yard run for gold.

NSU got on the board with a pair of field goals in the second to make the score 14-6 at the break.

A one-yard rush and score from Kelly capped off a 13-play, 80-yard drive that took more than six minutes off the clock. James again led the charge with rushes of 16, 10 and 17 in the drive to give the Lions a 21-6 lead after three quarters.

NSU would make it interesting, however. The RiverHawks scored to make it 21-13 early in the fourth and added another touchdown with a failed two-point conversion to make the score 21-19 with 10:41 left in the fourth.

The Lions answered right back with Wolff's 44-yard field goal to make the score 24-19 and that's when the Southern defense took over. Southern forced two separate turnover on downs on the RiverHawks final two possessions, the last one with just 30 seconds left on the clock to secure the win.

Southern had 228 yards rushing and 97 yards through the air in the game.

The Lions will be back in action next weekend as Southern plays host to Central Oklahoma. Kickoff is slated for 2 pm.