YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (AP) — Beau Brungard had a touchdown pass and Ethan Wright ran for two scores to help Youngstown State hold off Indiana State 21-14 on Saturday in the Sycamores' Missouri Valley Football Conference opener.
Wright had a 2-yard touchdown run in the first and second quarters, Brungard capped an 11-play drive with an 8-yard scoring toss to Latrell Fordham and Youngstown State (2-4, 1-1) took a 21-0 lead into halftime.
Indiana State (1-4, 0-1) bounced back in the third quarter, scoring on Elijah Owens' 34-yard touchdown pass to Plez Lawrence and Owens' 4-yard touchdown run to close within a touchdown at the 4:29 mark.
The Sycamores had a first-and-10 at the Youngstown State 12-yard line with two minutes left to play, but Joe Brown sacked Owens for an 8-yard loss on third down and Owens threw incomplete on fourth-and-23, turning the ball over on downs and allowing the Penguins to run out the clock.
Brungard completed 11 of 18 passes for 130 yards with one interception for Youngstown State. Wright rushed for 81 yards on 15 carries.
Owens totaled 149 yards on 15-for-27 passing for Indiana State. Owens also carried 26 times for 114 of the Sycamores' 135 yards on the ground.
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