Goodwell, Okla.—Panhandle State Football's home-opener on their new turf field, complete with impressive new video board, may not have gone as planned, but it did not keep Aggie fans from sticking around through a three-hour rain delay to see the final score posted after Midnight at Anchor D Stadium.

The Aggies met with Hastings College who entered the contest with one win under their belts from last weeks' second half 26-point comeback against Peru State. The first quarter had Hastings on the board after their third series that went nine plays for 52 yards and a TD (7-0). The quarter switched during a Panhandle possession, sitting fourth and six on the Bronco's seven yard line. Freshman kicker Eduardo Villarreal booted a 24-yard field goal at the start of the second quarter to add three points for the home team (7-3).

After a 60-yard kickoff from Guymon's own Javier Medina, the Aggie Darkside Defense took over at the HAS-22. The Broncos gained three first downs in the drive taking them 54 yards downfield, but were left empty-handed on 4th and 14 as a blocked field goal attempt was ran back for a touchdown by freshman defensive back Lisimba Young of Provine High School in Jackson, Miss. Young took the return 70 yards to give the Aggies a 10-7 lead with 12 minutes remaining in the half. As weather rolled in and the lightening threatened, the rain delay began at about 6:30 p.m. with ten minutes on the clock in the second quarter.

At 10:15 p.m. play resumed with a great crowd remaining in the stands to support their Aggies. The team fed off the energy and scored a second touchdown on their first drive back on field. Senior Quarterback Brandon Ramon sent an 11-yard pass to sophomore receiver Seth Barbarino who pulled it in for the score. With the point after kick successful off the foot of Villarreal, the Aggies edged a 17-7 advantage over the Broncos. On Hastings' ensuing drive they pushed through the Aggie defense, going 75 yards on 12 plays to land in the end zone and narrow the gap to 17-13 with under three minutes remaining in the half. Both teams were forced to punt on their next respective drives, and the half ended with Panhandle State sitting 3rd and 9 at midfield. With the weather delay, the teams agreed on a five minute intermission for halftime.

The second half was riddled with penalties including a holding call on the Aggies that opened their first full drive of the third quarter. Hastings held the Aggies to a punt and went on to tick over four minutes off the clock with a possession that resulted in a 31-yard field goal to bring the score to 17-16. As the Broncos closed in on the Aggies, their energy and momentum mounted both on the field and on the sideline. Another punt by Panhandle State on a three-and-out series, brought up the Hastings offense to their own 25 yard line. Two rushes and one holding call set the visitors back to the 17 yard line forcing a pass by the Broncos. Young, again, was in the right place at the right time and intercepted the pass on a 3rd and 20 play. The touchdown return was negated by two consecutive illegal block penalties, giving the Aggies the ball on the HAS-46 yard line. The Aggies ended up turning the ball over on downs and the third quarter ticked on to remain 17-16 with the Aggies ahead going into the fourth period.

Hastings threatened in the red zone, to start the 4th quarter on the OPSU-13. A great defensive stand by the Aggies held the Broncos to a field goal to give Hastings a 19-17 lead. Senior running back Orlando Haymon collected 28 yards on four carries to bring the Aggies into Bronco territory on their next drive, but two 15-yard penalties in the series, brought Villarreal back out to punt. The Aggies added three more penalties on Hastings' next possession, giving them almost 35 yards which helped them enter the end zone for their third TD of the day (26-17). Three incomplete passes for the Aggies brought another punt with less than four minutes remaining in the game. Hastings ran out the clock on their next possession and left Goodwell with a late-night victory.

Defensively the Aggies outmatched their opponents 72-44 in tackles, 11-1 in tackles for loss and 9-6 in pass breakups. Sophomore DeAdryelle Fites led the game in tackles by a wide margin, taking 11 solos and six assists along with one TFL and one breakup. Junior Nate Leithead tallied eight tackles, followed by senior D'Darrin Primes with 7.5. Primes led the game in tackles for loss with three for nine yards. D'Quan Charles was the team's fourth-leading tackler with seven and one pass breakup. In his collegiate debut, Lisimba Young landed three tackles, one interception, one breakup and had one blocked field goal returned for a touchdown.

The Aggie offense recorded 263 total yards; 121 passing and 142 rushing. The team suffered on third down conversions going 2-14 and went 0-3 on fourth down. Haymon led the team in rushing with 49 yards on 11 carries, followed by sophomore Geroge Dominguez from Turpin who had 36 yards on four carries. Haymon also led the team in receiving yards with 73 yards on two receptions. Ramon went 1-30 for 142 yards passing on the day. Special teams proved productive with Villarreal averaging 36.4 yards per punt and one good field goal. Medina totaled 221 yards on four kickoffs and Kevin Carter and Miguel Hudson served as the teams' leading returners combining for 55 yards. Hastings finished with 438 total yards on offense; 186 rushing and 252 passing.

While disappointed with the outcome and excessive penalties by his team, Head Coach Russell Gaskamp was glad to get the first game in the books, "We learn by playing and I think there is a lot we can take away from this game to help us improve for West Texas. We absolutely cannot win games when we commit 16 penalties and give up 161 yards." Speaking to the bright side Gaskamp added, "I was extremely impressed with our fans and the crowd that showed up and came back after the delay. This was by far the largest crowd I have seen in my time at Panhandle State and I can only hope it continues throughout the season, because it was awesome! I also want to offer my sincere thanks and appreciation to the work crews and everyone who had a hand in getting the stadium put together and ready to go for this game. It meant a lot to our guys to get to open their season on the new turf and with such a great crowd in the stands."

Gaskamp reminds Aggie fans that the team plays at West Texas A&M in Canyon, Texas this week and there will be a pre-game alumni event followed by an Aggie tailgate at the stadium before the 6 p.m. kickoff. The game is set for Saturday, Sept. 8 and will offer live stats and video online for those unable to attend. For more details on the Aggie Alumni event, please contact Diane Murphey at 580-349-1390 or by email at diane@opsu.edu.