SAN ANTONIO – The Tiger football team outlasted Washington & Lee University (VA) for a 16-10 non-conference home victory on Saturday afternoon.

Trinity (2-1) and Washington & Lee (1-2) were both coming off lopsided victories last week, but today's game wound up being a defensive struggle that featured just one offensive touchdown. The Tigers trailed after one quarter but scored 13 of its 16 total points in the second, and then held the lead throughout the final two quarters to secure the win.

Both teams were strong defensively, combining for five total turnovers and 10.0 tackles for loss. Linebackers Cade Rabson (The Woodlands, Texas / College Park) and James Ogunrin (Katy, Texas / Episcopal) led Trinity in tackling, accounting for 21 of the team's 60 tackles. Rabson finished with a career-high 12 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss. Ogunrin notched nine tackles – one of the most important being a tackle at the goal line to prevent W&L out of the end zone early in the fourth quarter.

Tyson Cornett (Marquez, Texas / Leon) picked up his third interception in as many games this season, while Trey Green (Broadview Heights, Ohio / Brecksville-Broadview Heights) recorded his first pick of the season. Jaden Powell (Denton, Texas / Guyer) had a fumble recovery to account for the other turnover forced by the Tigers in the game.

 The Tigers ran for 125 yards in the game, with a trio of running backs carrying most of the load. Winston Hutchison (Round Rock, Texas / McNeil) led the way with 63 yards on 16 carries, while Legend Grigsby (Houston, Texas / Cypress Creek) finished with 51 yards on 12 totes. Johnny Milo (The Woodlands, Texas / Caney Creek) also had 44 yards on just seven rushes, leading the team with an average of 6.3 yards/carry, and scoring the only offensive touchdown of the game.

Ryan Back (Austin, Texas / Vandegrift) completed 16-of-25 passes for 125 yards through the air, spreading the ball to six different receivers. Will Taylor (Houston, Texas / Strake Jesuit) led the team with four receptions for 32 yards, while three other Tiger players had three catches each.

Tyler Huettel (McKinney, Texas / McKinney) nailed three first-half field goals, including a 45-yard boot early in the second quarter that pulled the Tigers within one point. He also had three punts for 118 total yards, highlighted by a 47-yard kick that helped Trinity maintain the field position advantage.

The Rundown
Trinity drove 73 yards on 14 plays to open the game but stalled inside the 10 yard line and had to settle for an 18-yard field goal by Huettel. The Tigers converted on fourth-and-one at the eight, but were unable to come up with the six.

The Tiger defense came up with a huge tackle in the backfield on third-and-short to force a three-and-out on the first possession for Washington & Lee. Trinity's offense took over in Generals territory after Lamont Nickleberry (Childress, Texas / Childress) returned the first punt of the day 27 yards. Three plays later, though, Back was intercepted, and the visitors ran it back 65 yards to take a 7-3 lead.

With both teams running the ball plenty and both offenses chewing up plenty of clock, Trinity's third possession of the game spilled into the second quarter. The Tigers drove inside the 30 looking for the score, but a penalty and a sack by W&L set up the 45-yard three-pointer from Huettel to make it a 7-6 game.

The Generals gained only seven yards on the first three plays of the ensuing drive but decided to go for it on fourth down instead of punting the ball away. Trinity's defense got the stop, though, and set the offense up just 32 yards from paydirt. Grigsby had a 10-yard run to push the Tigers into the red zone, and then Milo ran 14 yards on the final two plays, diving for the pylon on an outside run to score a touchdown that put Trinity in front 13-7.

Washington & Lee got the ball back again, but still couldn't find any room to run against the Tiger defense. The visitors went for it again on fourth down, but once again, Trinity stood tall and forced another turnover on downs. The offense had another short field to work with but couldn't punch it in for the score. Huettel came on for a 19-yard field goal that made it a 16-7 game – a score that held until halftime.

Trinity's defense gave up just 27 yards in the first half, with 16 of those coming on the final drive by the Generals. Washington & Lee crossed midfield for the first time, but another tackle in the backfield pushed them back into their own territory again. The Generals attempted to convert again on fourth down, but a penalty pushed them back even farther and they were forced to punt.

The second half started with a huge play for Washington & Lee, which broke off a 53-yard run on its opening play from scrimmage to nearly double its offensive output to that point. The Generals edged their way into the red zone, but an option play to the right led to a fumbled pitch, and Powell recovered for the Tigers to kill the drive.

The teams exchanged punts the rest of the third quarter, but W&L started a drive late in the third that ran into the fourth and resulted in the only points of the second half for either team. The 13-play drive covered 71 yards, but Trinity's defense once again came up big in the red zone. The Generals made it to the one before a penalty pushed them back 15 yards and led to a field goal to account for the final score.

Any chance of a comeback was squashed time and time again by the Tiger defense, which ended the next two W&L drives with interceptions. The break came in the final moments, though, as Trinity mishandled a snap on a punt, and the Generals took over at the Trinity 36 with 2:12 remaining. The Tiger defense held once again, with Anthony Njoku (Richmond, Texas / Travis) breaking up a fourth-down pass that allowed Trinity to take the field for victory formation and end the game.

Up Next
Trinity will have its bye week next weekend, then will start defense of its Southern Athletic Association title by playing at Centre College in Danville, Ky. The game will kick off at 1:00 p.m. (ET) on saturday, October 4.