(Peru, Neb.) – After trailing 10-3 at halftime, the Peru State football team scored 27 answered points to take a commanding lead. The Bobcats would go on to capture a 30-17 win over the visiting Central Methodist (Mo.) (CMU) Eagles on Saturday in the historic Oak Bowl.
 
It was the first win of the season for the Bobcats who had their first two contests postponed due to Covid-19. The 'Cats improved to 1-1 on the year while the Eagles fell to 2-1. All of the contests so far have been Heart of America Athletic Conference (Heart) cross-division games.
 
The win helped a Covid-size capacity crowd on Saturday to celebrate Homecoming in a great way!
 
First Quarter Action
 
Ki'Jana Owens (North Platte) returned the opening kickoff 13 yards as the Bobcats started the first possession on CMU's 49-yard line. Marlon Warren (Vancleave, Miss.) carried the ball for four yards before Peru State had two incomplete passes which brought up fourth and six. On a fake punt, Joey Dominguez (Van Ormy, Texas) carried the ball for 12 yards and a first down. Unfortunately after that, the offense stalled and the Eagles took over on their own 28-yard line.

 
Central Methodist was able to put together an eight-play, 41-yard drive which eventually resulted in a 48-yard field goal to take a 3-0 lead with 7:55 left in the first quarter.
 
The teams would trade possessions the rest of the quarter with the Eagles leaving 3-0.
 
Second Quarter Action
 
On Peru State's second possession of the quarter, the Bobcats would take over at midfield after a very short Eagle punt with 7:33 left in the half.
 
Owens carried for five yards and then Dominguez found Garrison Dodge (Oakland) for a ten-yard reception moving the ball to CMU's 35-yard line. Owens went for nine yards and then caught a two-yard pass from Dominguez to get a first down. Later on third and nine, Dominguez carried the ball of 17 yards down to the six-yard line. After a holding penalty moved the ball to the three-yard line, the Eagle defense stiffened and forced the Bobcats to try a field goal. Mack Boekhout (Elkhorn) put a 23-yard attempt through the uprights to knot the score at 3-3 with 2:03 left in the half.
 
CMU used just 26 seconds to score a touchdown and with the extra point, the Eagles led 10-3 which was the halftime score.
 
Third Quarter Action
 
Central Methodist started with the ball to being the third stanza. After a short gain, on a throwing down, Carlos Thomas (Cheyenne, Wyo.) picked off the Eagle pass and returned it 28 yards to the CMU nine-yard line.
 
After no gain on the first rushing attempt, a Bobcat pass attempt was incomplete. On third and nine, there was a pass interference call which moved the ball to the Eagle two-yard line. After a loss of two yards, Dominguez found Garry Fleming (Saint Petersburg, Fla.) for a four-yard touchdown pass. Boekhout's kick was good and Peru State tied the game at 10-10 with 12:38 left in the third quarter.
 
The Bobcat defense was tough again on the Eagles and forced a punt. The 'Cats would take over the 50-yard line to start their next possession.
 
Zaron Wright (Gibsonton, Fla.) went for six yards which was followed by three yards by Warren. On third and one, Dominguez found Wright for a nine-yard gain which moved the ball to CMU's 32-yard line. Dominguez again found Wright, this time for five yards. After a two-yard loss, on third and seven, Dominguez went to the air and hit Tim Jones (Brandon, Fla.) for a 29-yard touchdown pass. Boekhout hit the PAT and the 'Cats had their first lead of the year at 17-10 with 7:16 left in the third period.

 
CMU would only gain eight yards on their next possession and the Bobcats would take over on their 30-yard line with five minutes to go in the period. Peru State would move the ball down to the CMU 29-yard line in the early part of the fourth quarter, but would have to punt. Dominguez hit a pooch punt pinning the Eagles deep at their own six-yard line with 14:49 left in the game.
 
Fourth Quarter Action
 
Peru State forced another three and out and started their first possession of the fourth on CMU's 46-yard line with 13:46 to go in the contest.
 
Owens carried for seven yards and then J'lon Horton went eight yards for a first down. Dominguez went for four and then the 'Cats were called for a holding penalty. On second and 16 from CMU's 37-yard line, Owens scampered for 33 yards while carrying Eagle tacklers for several yards. After an incomplete pass, Dominguez carried the ball in the final four yards for a Bobcat touchdown. Boekhout's kick was good and Peru State led 24-10 with 11:46 left in the game.
 
Central Methodist would have nine plays on their next possession which eventually stalled on Peru State's 30-yard line as they went for it on fourth and 16.
 
After a short loss on the Bobcats' first play, Owens went 71 yards to the house for another Peru State touchdown. The point after pass play attempt failed, but the 'Cats led 30-10 with 7:19 to go in the game.
 
CMU would get one more score as they went 77 yards in 11 plays to put the score at 30-17 with 3:42 left in the contest.
 
Peru State could not muster anything in their next possession giving the Eagles another opportunity. CMU did must two long pass plays and were down to the Bobcats' 28-yard line when on second and ten, Thomas nabbed his second interception of the game.
 
The Bobcats would nearly run the clock out, but CMU had one last pass which was broken up with Peru State winning 30-17.

 
It was Peru State's first win over the Eagles since 2017.

CENTRAL METHODIST GAME BOOK
 
Team Statistics
 
The overall statistics were fairly close with the exception of the time of possession.
 
Peru State finished with 19 first downs while CMU had 18. Each team got theirs in different ways as the Bobcats had 224 yards on the ground and 77 through the air while the Eagles were the opposite gaining just 29 yards on the ground and 259 through the air. CMU was 23 of 43 in passing while Peru State was ten of 20.
 
CMU had one lost fumble while Peru State had two fumbles. The Bobcats did nab two interceptions so the 'Cats won the turnover battle.
 
The Eagles were flagged for six penalties for 36 yards while Peru State had seven penalties for 64 yards.
 
The time of possession was definitely in favor of Peru State as they had the ball for nearly 37 minutes.
 
Peru Offensive Statistics
 
Owens led all rushers with 173 net yards on 17 carries and had one touchdown. Dominguez added 40 yards while Horton had 20 yards.
 
With his 173 yards, Owens put up the highest total rushing since 2013 when Ethan Bray went for 252 yards.
 
Dominguez was eight of 15 passing for 70 yards and two touchdowns. Sohail Mohsini (Brentwood, Calif.) was two of five for seven yards.
 
Fleming had three catches for 14 yards and one touchdown while Wright had two catches for 14 yards as well. Jones' lone catch of 29 yards was good for a touchdown. Dodge had one catch for ten yards while Javon Stephens (Gibsonton, Fla.) caught one for seven yards.
 
Special Team Statistics
 
Gustavo Brochetto (San Marcos, Brazil) punted three times averaging 29.7 yards. Dominguez punted once for 23 yards.
 
Jace Stewart (Slocomb, Ala.) had two punt returns for five yards. Owens had one kickoff return for 38 yards while Stephens had one for 19 yards.
 
Boekhout had one field goal for 23 yards and kicked off five times averaging 55 yards which included one touchback. Brochetto kicked off one time for 46 yards.
 
Defensive Statistics
 
Thomas had a monster game on the defensive side of the ball as he finished the game with eight total tackles – six of which were solo. In addition, he had one sack for a loss of eight yards and added three tackles for losses of 14 yards. Also, Thomas grabbed two interceptions with returns of 28 yards and forced a fumble.
 
Deiontay Dozier (Mesa, Ariz.), Stewart, and Travis Reed (Hickman) all finished with six tackles. Dozier and Stewart each had five solo tackles while Reed finished with three solo. Stewart had two pass break-ups. Reed had one sack for a loss of four yards.
 
Nathaniel Barbary (Rockford, Ill.) and Clayton Thrasher (Mandeville, La.) each finished with five tackles – two of which were solo. Barbary added 1.5 tackles for a loss of 9.5 yards. Ethan Skarmas (Palm Desert, Calif.) had two solo tackles which were sacks for 23 yards of loss. In addition, Skarmas broke up a pass.
Upcoming Contests
 
Peru State will be on the road next week for one of their postponed contests. The Bobcats will be in Atchison, Kansas, to take on Benedictine at 1 p.m. Benedictine began the season with wins over Clarke (Iowa) and Culver-Stockton (Mo.) before falling on Saturday 41-7 at Grand View (Iowa).
 
On October 17, the 'Cats will be back in the Oak Bowl for a 1 p.m. contest as they will host their first Heart North Division contest against Clarke. The Pride have started the season with a 1-2 mark with their win coming over MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) and their losses being to Benedictine, and Baker (Kan.).