Glendale, Ariz.- Arizona Christian battled in their first half with Dakota State and went into the half locker room up 27-20.  Unfortunately, the Trojans shut down the Firestorm in the second half to hand ACU their second loss of the season.

De Shawn Smith II was impressive as a returner as he accounted for 149 kick and punt return yards including a 95 yard kick return for a touchdown.

Jakwon Lamb secured two interceptions in his Firestorm debut.  Eight Firestorm recorded five or more tackles.

Game Info

• Game score: Dakota State 44, Arizona Christian - 27
• Records: Arizona Christian- 0-2, Dakota State - 2-1
• NAIA Top 25 Rank: Arizona Christian - not ranked, Dakota State - not ranked
• Location:  ACU Football Field, Arizona Christian University, Glendale, AZ

Offensive Stars

• Smith- 149 return yards, TD
• William Galvan - 71 rushing yards, TD
• Josh Bell- 157 yards passing, 2 TD

Defensive Stars

• Lamb- 2 Interceptions
• Lealofi Chanwong - 6 tackles
• John West - 5 tackles, blocked kick, pass breakup

Inside The Numbers

• On the first play from scrimmage, DSU converted an 80 passing TD
• Galvan carried the Firestorm into the endzone with a 39 yard burst
• Following a fumble on the kickoff return by DSU, Bell connected with McKivitz on 21 touchdown strike
• DSU scored on the final play of the first quarter
• The ensuing kickoff in the second quarter saw Smith break free for a 95 kick return
• On a fourth and four, Bell to Tee Johnson produced a 21 yard TD reception
• After taking a 27-20 lead into the half, ACU ran 19 play drive that resulted in a missed field goal
• DSU took over from there and rattled off 24 unanswered points.

Thoughts from Coach Bowen
"I am proud of our team's improvement from game one.  The guys fought hard to stay in the game.  We had a great opportunity to win it and we just came up a little short.  But I know our team has a lot of fight in them and we will continue to improve."

Up Next
On Saturday, the Firestorm will hit the road for the first time in 2025 and head to Mayville, ND, to face Mayville State.  Kick-off is set for 12:00 pm (Arizona)/ 2:00 pm (Central).