RECAP: Central Washington wins border battle against Clan

ELLENSBURG, Wa – The Border Battle goes to Central Washington University after the Wildcats defeated Simon Fraser University 40-7 Saturdayafternoon at Tomlinson Stadium in the second annual Battle for the Border game presented by the Washington National Guard.

For the second-straight year, CWU (2-2) defeated Simon Fraser (0-3) in the Battle for the Border and the Battle for the Border Trophy will remain in Ellensburg for another year.

Central Washington scored early and often against the Clan. Simon Fraser trailed 21-0 after the first quarter and 35-0 at the half as the Wildcats dominated the Clan in all areas of the contest.

“We had it handed to us today but we fought hard to the end and we will get better from this experience,” said SFU head coach Kelly Bates.

Central Washington ran just four offensive plays in the first quarter but three of them went for touchdowns. The Wildcats scored 21 points in 51 seconds of offensive possession in their first three drives.

Simon Fraser opened the game on a 12-play 54-yard drive but missed the 38-yard field goal attempt.

SFU’s lone touchdown came early in the fourth quarter when WR Earl Anderson caught a 55-yard pass from back-up QB Tyler Nickel and took it in for a score.

“Right now we are playing so many young guys that the game was almost too big for us a whole,” said Bates. “We knew we had to play our best to be in this game today and that didn’t happen.”

Simon Fraser was unable to generate any offence against the Wildcats. CWU finished with 452 yards of total offence compared to 111 for the Clan.

The Wildcats scored 40 points for the second-consecutive week.

The Clan rushed for just three total yards on 29 carries while quarterbacks Ryan Stanford and Tyler Nickel were a combined 12 of 31 for 108 yards passing.

SFU freshman RB David Lagou replaced Josh Hayden at running back after Hayden was injured. Lagou finished with 15 carries for 30 yards. Junior Ante Milanovic-Litre had one carry for 30 yards near the end of the contest.

“We have an 18-year-old at running back and three freshmen in the secondary,” said Bates. “They are gaining valuable experience that will make us better down the road.”

The Clan defence was led by the Herdman brothers who combined for 28 tackles and two sacks. LB Jordan Herdman led the team with eight solo tackles and seven assists while Justin Herdman had eight tackles and five assists. Justin also had a forced fumble and an interception.

In the inaugural Battle for the Border the Wildcats defeated the Clan 63-7.

Central Washington holds a 29-10 all-time record over Simon Fraser dating back to 1967.  At home the Wildcats are 16-3. The Wildcats have lost to the Clan just once in Ellensburg in the NCAA Division II era, 21-14 in 2013.