Bolivar, Mo. – The SBU football team began conference play Saturday afternoon as they hosted the Upper Iowa Peacocks. The Bearcats fell in the defensive battle by a final score of 7-21 moving to 1-2 on the season.
 
The teams fought over field position for nearly the entire first half of the game, with the first score coming just past the two-minute timeout. The Bearcats took the lead with 1:55 remaining in the 2^nd quarter off a 13-yard touchdown pass from Drew Boxwell to Kamau Ransom. The Bearcats held that lead until early into the 4^th quarter where the Peacocks scored three unanswered touchdowns.
 
The Bearcat defense was led by junior Levi Korir who led the team with seven total tackles including six solo. He also had a massive forced fumble on the one yard line as the Peacock quarterback was about to enter the endzone. The fumble was recovered by a Bearcat and kept the Bearcats with a 7-0 lead. Caleb Saner and Jed Brandon also tagged along seven tackles a piece.
 
Offensively, the SBU quarterback Drew Boxwell threw for 262 yards off 20 total completions. He hit six different Bearcats for targets with Ransom and Jordan Kent being his top targets for five catches a piece. Another top receiver was junior Avery Lamber who caught for 70 yards off only three receptions. Regan Wilson, Jaquan Dorsey, and Jobe Smith also caught at least one catch on the day for 51, 22, and 16 yards respectively.
 
The Bearcat football team will finish their three-game homestand next Saturday as they host the newest GLVC member Lincoln Blue Tigers. Southwest Baptist will play in front of their homecoming crowd at Plaster Stadium at 1pm on September 28^th.