ST. PAUL – The University of Northwestern football team was tripped up by visiting MacMurray College (4-2, 3-2), 38-14, Saturday afternoon at Reynolds Field. The defeat was the first of the year for the Eagles, who fall to 5-1 overall and 4-1 in Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) play.

After MacMurray took the opening kickoff and drove 64 yards for the first score of the game, UNW answered back with an 8-play, 34-yard drive that ended in a Corban Halbur (Richfield, Minn./Richfield) 11-yard touchdown toss to Cody Carlson (Dallas Center, Iowa/Des Moines Christian) with 4:03 to play in the second quarter.

With things winding down in the first half, it looked as if the score would be 7-7 heading into the locker room, but both squads combined to score 21 points in the first half's final 1:38. Sandwiched between a pair of Highlander scores was a 9-yard touchdown scamper from Halbur. A 47-yard bomb from Halbur to Zach Duerwachter (La Crescent, Minn./La Crescent) and a personal foul penalty set the Eagles up with a 1st and goal and the scoring opportunity.

MacMurray tacked on to their 21-14 halftime lead with a pair of scores in the third quarter – a 23-yard pass and a pick six, before a 25-yard field goal from the Highlanders in the fourth quarter put the game out of reach.

Ben Greener (Foley, Minn./Home School) recorded his fourth double-digit tackle performance, finishing with 13 stops to lead all players. Andrew Smith (Henning, Minn./Henning) was in on 11 tackles and Gideon Burnham (Alexandria, Minn./Jefferson) posted a pair of tackles for loss. Daniel Stratton (Lucerne Valley, Calif./Lucerne Valley) recovered a fumble that was forced by Nick Swore (Grand Rapids, Mich./Northpointe Christian). Swore also had a strong showing, turning in 11 tackles.

Payton Bowdry (Minneapolis, Minn./South) rushed 17 times for 81 yards to pace the ground game. The freshman averaged 4.8 yards per carry. Halbur finished 16-of-31 for 164 yards and a score through the air. Duerwachter grabbed three of those for a game-high 73 yards, while Carlson hauled in five receptions for 53 yards.

An explosive Highlander offense outgained the Eagles 527 to 312, as MacMurray averaged nearly seven yards per play.

The Eagles will hit the road for three of their next four games, heading to Duluth next Saturday for a 4:30 p.m. contest with the College of St. Scholastica. More information can be found at www.unwagles.com.