Hastings College Football Pulls Out 21-14 Win at Briar Cliff

(Sioux City, IA) – Playing at Briar Cliff in their second straight road contest, Hastings took down the Chargers, 21-14 on Saturday afternoon.

Hastings forced a punt on the opening possession for the Chargers, then went 67 yards on eight plays, capped by a 43-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Jarrett Synek to senior Jake Weidinger to take a 7-0 lead. Briar Cliff responded three minutes later with a two-yard touchdown run to tie it at seven heading to the second quarter.

On fourth-and-five from the Hastings 48-yard line, junior linebacker Justyce Hostetler held the Chargers short, giving the Broncos good field position. Synek completed two passes of 10 yards or more to senior tight end Carson Kudlacek and Weidinger. The pass plays set up senior running back Kaiden Merryman, who ran 24 yards for a touchdown to retake the lead at 14-7. 

Briar Cliff used up over nine minutes of game clock on their next drive, scoring on a fourth-and goal pass from three yards out to tie it at 14 going to the half. Briar Cliff had a 222-153 advantage in total yards and led 14-8 in first downs during the first half. Synek was 6-11 for 90 yards and a touchdown. Weidinger had three catches for 56 yards and a touchdown, while Merryman had nine carries for 54 yards and a touchdown.

On the second play of the second half, Synek found a wide open Bronco 20 yards downfield in sophomore tight end Jude Smith, who ran the rest of the way for a 62-yard touchdown, making it 21-14. Hastings got down to the Briar Cliff 11-yard line on their next possession, but threw an interception to give it back to the Chargers.

Hastings turned the Chargers over on downs on the first possessions of the fourth, but the Chargers got an interception in the red zone. The Broncos forced another turnover on downs on fourth-and-three from the Bronco 43-yard line. Hastings picked up a couple of third downs on the ground, getting to the 24-yard line with 2:13 left. From there the Broncos were able to run out the clock in the 21-14 win.

For the game, the Broncos had a 347-295 advantage in total yards, throwing for 213 yards and passing for 134 yards. Synek was 11-23 for 213 yards and two touchdowns. Merryman had 16 carries for 75 yards. Smith had three catches for 83 yards and a touchdown, while Weidinger had three catches for 56 yards and a touchdown. 

Defensively, junior linebacker Dawson Kissinger had 13 tackles, including 11 solo, and had three tackles for a loss of five yards. Hostetler added nine tackles, five of which were solo.

Up next, Hastings (4-4) will host #5 Morningside for Senior Day on Saturday, Nov. 7 at 1pm.