CEDAR CITY — Southern Utah found a way to finish strong, rallying in the fourth quarter to take down No. 13 Abilene Christian 31-24 at Eccles Coliseum Saturday.
The Thunderbirds opened the game with a fast start when Joshua Dye punched in the first touchdown of the day to give Southern Utah a 7-0 lead. Abilene Christian responded with a score of its own, tying things up 7-7 by the end of the first quarter.
The Wildcats added a field goal early in the second before Mikey Allen found the end zone for the Thunderbirds to regain the lead. Abilene Christian answered again just before halftime, taking a 17-14 lead going into the break.
Dye struck once more in the third quarter, powering in his second touchdown to swing the lead back to Southern Utah.
Abilene Christian wasn't done yet and the Wildcats scored early in the fourth quarter to take a 3-point lead. But the Thunderbirds hit a field goal to tie the game, and then with time winding down, Shane Carr scored the go-ahead touchdown, putting Southern Utah on top for the eventual win.
With the victory, Southern Utah improves to 2-5 on the season and picks up a momentum-building home win before heading into a rivalry matchup against Utah Tech next week at Greater Zion Stadium.
