The Missouri Southern defense gave up only one offensive touchdown and allowed just 254 yards of total offense, but were shutout 23-0 today by Washburn at homecoming in front of more than 6,300 fans at Fred G. Hughes Stadium.

The Lions (3-3, 1-3 MIAA) and Ichabods (4-2, 2-2 MIAA) traded possessions in the first quarter as neither offense moved the ball consistently with the exception of one possession for Washburn that resulted in a missed 37 yard field goal.

The Ichabods got on the board with 4:43 left in the second quarter when Brad Cole returned a tipped pass from Adam Hinspeter for 30 yards for the game’s first score. Washburn got the ball back late in the quarter and drove the field when Ichabod quarterback Josh Iverson completed a pass to Ryan Mertz at the Southern eight yard line with seven seconds left. He got up to the line and spiked the ball,  however, the officials had yet to signal for play to begin, so the Bods were charged with a delay of game.

Washburn’s Justin Cooper then rushed for seven yards to the Southern six yard line and it looked as if time had expired, however the officials ruled an Ichabod timeout had been called and put two seconds back on the clock, good enough for a 23 yard field goal from Garret Cummings, giving Washburn a 10-0 lead at the half.

Neither team scored in the third. The Ichabods picked up a 58 yard interception return from Casey Curran with 5:38 left in the fourth and a 16 yard run from Cooper with just under two minutes remaining. That proved to be the game’s only offensive touchdown.

Both teams had 15 first downs, but the difference was on the ground where Washburn out gained the Lions 168-20. The Lions were penalized nine times for 55 yards and got past the 50 yard line just three times in the game, the furthest being the Washburn 38 yard line.

Adam Hinspeter was 25-45 for 183 yards passing with two interceptions. Johnny Johnson had nine catches for 80 yards, while Renard Johnson had eight carries for 41 yards.

Defensively, the Lions shined today. Skyler Vandiver had 12 tackles, including a half a sack and 1.5 tackles for a loss of six yards. Jared Brawner had 10 tackles, a half a sack and two pass breakups. Corderial Collier and Dusty Bratzler each had nine tackles, while Bratzler picked up a sack for a loss of 14 yards. He had 1.5 tackles for a loss of 17 yards on the afternoon. Jairius Jarvis and Brandon Williams each had a sack, while Josh Woodard had three quarterback hurries.

The Lions will be back at it next Saturday as they travel to Hays, Kansas to take on Fort Hays in a 2 pm matchup.