LCU falls to unbeaten Ottawa, 45-13

SURPRISE, AZ – The Louisiana Christian University Wildcats made their longest road trip of the 2022 season when they went through the desert of Arizona to face undefeated Ottawa Spirit. The Wildcats held a 6-0 lead at the end of the first quarter but ultimately fell to the seventh-ranked team in the nation, 45-13.

The two defenses proved to be ready for the battle as the opposing offenses exchanged punts on two consecutive drives each before the first scoring opportunity presented itself.

Runs of 21 yards and four yards from Rob McKnight set up Wildcats quarterback Sal Palermo III to connect with Micah Dunn on a 72-yard touchdown pass to put LCU on the board first with 6:48 left in the first quarter. Hunter Martensson attempted the point-after-touchdown but it was blocked by the Spirit and the Wildcats held their 6-0 lead through the end of the quarter.

Once the second quarter began, the Spirit offense came alive starting with a five-yard touchdown pass from Isaiah Randalle to Donovahn Jones. The PAT by Landon Reeves gave Ottawa their first lead of the night, a lead that they would maintain until the final whistle.

Ottawa added another touchdown just three minutes after their first on a Reeves field goal from 36-yard away. The Spirit would maintain their 10-6 lead heading into halftime.

The home team was able to score 28 unanswered points in the third quarter to extend their lead to 38-6 heading into the fourth quarter. The Wildcats got on the board for final time on a 14-yard touchdown run by McKnight with Martensson adding the extra point. OUAZ added one final touchdown on another Randalle touchdown pass to remain undefeated with a win 45-13 win over LCU.

Palermo finished the night completing 20 passes on 39 attempts for 302 yards and one touchdown while throwing three interceptions. Palermo was also sacked six times in the contest.

Micah Dunn caught nine passes for 199 yards, the second highest single game total of his career, and a touchdown. McKnight led the Wildcat rushing game with 41 yards and a touchdown on seven carries.

Logan Brimmer led the Wildcat defense with seven total tackles, four tackles for loss, and three sacks on the night.

The Wildcats (1-3, 1-2 SAC) will be back on the road again this week with another long trip ahead as they will head to Goodwell, Oklahoma to face the Aggies of Oklahoma Panhandle State University (2-3, 2-2 SAC).