LAS VEGAS, N.M. – The Western New Mexico University football team closed the 2012 season with a loss against in-state rival New Mexico Highlands, 58-0, Saturday afternoon in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference action.


New Mexico Highlands University (NMHU) scored on their opening possession, going 75 yards in 12 plays taking almost four minutes off the clock for the early 7-0 lead.


Western New Mexico University (WNMU) took their first possession out near midfield, with Ronnell Pompey (Los Angeles, CA/Fairfax Senior HS) catching a nine-yard pass from Mitch Glasmann (Temecula, CA/Chaparral), but NMHU (8-3, 7-2 RMAC) held and forced a punt.


The Cowboys would add the only other score in the first with another touchdown to take a 14-0 lead. Late in the quarter, Kameron Drawhorn (San Diego, CA/Fallbrook HS) boomed an 80-yard punt.


The start of the second quarter had WNMU (4-7, 3-6 RMAC) on the move. After Willie Bobbit (Downey, CA/Downey) returned a punt 23 yards to the NMHU 26, the offense would move the ball on the ground early with Antoine Young (Oakland, CA/Encinal HS) running for a seven-yard gain and then Abraham Macias (El Paso, TX/Socorro HS) added another seven-yard scamper to move the ball to the 12. Macias would take the next two carries and would collect six yards down to the six. The next play was intercepted, but a pass interference penalty on NMHU moved the ball to the two for a first-and-goal. NMHU held tough on defense, as a two-yard loss on a rush and then a one-yard gain by Macias had the ball at the three. An incomplete pass setup fourth-and-goal in which Young's pass was intercepted at the one.


NMHU took that drive down for a touchdown and they would add one more to take a 28-0 lead into halftime.


The teams would trade several possessions early in the third quarter before NMHU took advantage of good field position to tally a touchdown going just 36 yards for a 35-0 lead midway through the third.


NMHU would put together another drive late in the quarter to take a 42-0 lead into the fourth.


Kameron Drawhorn (San Diego, CA/Fallbrook HS) helped stop a drive midway through the quarter when he tallied an interception at the Mustang two.
Glasmann would hit Marquis Sumpter (Oceanside/Falbrook Union HS) for the longest pass play of the afternoon shortly after the interception, one that went 47 yards down to the NMHU 29. But again the NMHU defense held tough forcing a pair of incompletions and a sack to lead to a punt.


The Mustangs would get out near midfield on their final possession in the fourth quarter, following Macias chewing up 11 yards on a pair of carries and a 12-yard run by Young, but a sack earlier in the drive kept WNMU from the first down and would later turn the ball over on downs.


NMHU outgained WNMU, 630-85. Macias and John De La Rosa (Vinton, TX/Canutillo HS) were close to the same numbers on the ground, with Macias going for 30 yards on 10 carries and De La Rosa chewing up 28 yards on six attempts. Glasmann went 6-for-23 passing for 67 yards, while Young went 1-for-6 for two yards. Sumpter caught two passes for 53 yards.


The loss snaps a three-game winning streak for WNMU against NMHU in the battle for the Warrior Helmet trophy.


It was also the final game as Mustangs for the 13 WNMU seniors, Jerald Hines, Sunia Vaitai (Waianae, HI/Waianae HS), Eric Hall (Harbor City, CA/Narbonne HS), Antoine Young (Oakland, CA/Encinal HS), David Slover (Covina, CA/South Hills HS), Bernard McCrayton (Phoenix, AZ/Maryvale HS), Fernie De La Rosa (Vinton, TX/Canutillo HS), Kameron Drawhorn (San Diego, CA/Fallbrook HS), Grant Jordan (Cloudcroft, NM/Cloudcroft), Terron Sumpter, Marquis Sumpter (Oceanside/Falbrook Union HS), Bernard Williams and Wesley Bates (Panorama City, CA/William Howard HS).
 
  Western New Mexico vs New Mexico Highlands (Nov 10, 2012 at Las Vegas, N.M.)
 
  Score by Quarters     1  2  3  4   Score
  -----------------    -- -- -- --   -----
  Western New Mexico..  0  0  0  0  -  0       Record: (4-7,3-6)
  New Mexico Highlands 14 14 20 10  - 58       Record: (8-3,7-2)
 
  Scoring Summary:
  1st 11:04 NMHU - D. Davis 11 yd pass from E. Lewis (Z. Tapia kick), 12-75 3:56, WNMU 0 - NMHU 7
      06:11 NMHU - D. Davis 6 yd pass from E. Lewis (Z. Tapia kick), 10-72 2:32, WNMU 0 - NMHU 14
  2nd 06:38 NMHU - E. Woods 2 yd run (Z. Tapia kick), 17-96 5:09, WNMU 0 - NMHU 21
      01:13 NMHU - E. Woods 1 yd run (Z. Tapia kick), 13-74 3:37, WNMU 0 - NMHU 28
  3rd 08:16 NMHU - L. Peterson 6 yd run (Z. Tapia kick), 6-36 1:54, WNMU 0 - NMHU 35
      04:53 NMHU - V. Venegas 11 yd pass from E. Lewis (Z. Tapia kick), 5-46 1:43, WNMU 0 - NMHU 42
      01:27 NMHU - D. Davis 8 yd pass from E. Lewis (Z. Tapia kick failed), 7-80 2:03, WNMU 0 - NMHU 48
  4th 12:35 NMHU - L. Peterson 15 yd run (Z. Tapia kick), 7-56 2:52, WNMU 0 - NMHU 55
      03:04 NMHU - Z. Tapia 50 yd field goal, 5-12 1:41, WNMU 0 - NMHU 58
 
                                     WNMU     NMHU
  FIRST DOWNS...................        7       40
  RUSHES-YARDS (NET)............    29-25   45-256
  PASSING YDS (NET).............       60      374
  Passes Att-Comp-Int...........   35-8-1  64-40-1
  TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS.....    64-85  109-630
  Fumble Returns-Yards..........      0-0      0-0
  Punt Returns-Yards............     2-43     6-44
  Kickoff Returns-Yards.........     4-86      0-0
  Interception Returns-Yards....     1-29      1-3
  Punts (Number-Avg)............  12-41.2   5-40.8
  Fumbles-Lost..................      0-0      1-0
  Penalties-Yards...............     4-21     8-75
  Possession Time...............    25:21    34:39
  Third-Down Conversions........  2 of 18  9 of 17
  Fourth-Down Conversions.......   0 of 4   2 of 2
  Red-Zone Scores-Chances.......      0-1      8-9
  Sacks By: Number-Yards........     5-35     6-47