SERIES HISTORY
Saturday will be the 33rd all-time meeting between Evangel and Missouri Valley as the most played series for Evangel football. The Vikings have won the last nine meetings against Evangel and hold a 21-12 lead in the all-time series with the last Crusader win coming 2007 in Marshall.
OPENING STORYLINES
► Evangel returns home for two of its final three games starting this Saturday against Missouri Valley. The Crusaders will be looking for its fourth straight win and fifth win in the last five games of the season. Most importantly, Evangel looks to improve to 3-0 in conference play as both teams sit at 2-0 in the South Division.
► The Crusaders earned votes in the latest NAIA Coaches' Top 25 that was released Monday. Evangel is one of five Heart teams recognized in the newest poll with No. 2 Baker, No. 6 Grand View, No. 12 Benedictine, and Peru State receiving votes.
► The all-time series between the Crusaders and Vikings have been favored by Missouri Valley in recent years with a 9-game win streak for the Vikings. Evangel trails the series 21-12 with the last win coming in 2007 and with an inconsistent conference schedule the last home win against the Vikings dating even longer, Oct 18, 1997.
► Speaking of breaking streaks, the Crusaders snapped a 14-game losing streak to MidAmerica Nazarene with last week's 31-29 victory. Evangel built a 31-7 lead and held off an improbable comeback to seal the road win.
► The defense for Evangel has helped pace the Crusaders ranking fifth in scoring defense in the Heart in a virtual tie with Missouri Valley at 24. 5 points per game while the Vikings are holding teams to 24.3 points per game. The big impact has been in opponent's backfields ranking 12th nationally in sacks with 22.
► Senior defensive end Josh Evans (Pleasant Hope, Mo.) has continued to be a defensive leader and make a case for his first All-American honor. Evans leads the NAIA individuals with tackles for a loss (16) and ranks second nationally with nine sacks. Sean Rogers from Southern Oregon is the nation's leader with 9.5 sacks this season.
► Evans is also making his mark on the Evangel record books. The senior already holds the career and single-season tackles for a loss record after recording 21 last year and currently with 60.5 for his career. He has recorded 9.0 sacks so far this season giving him 28.0 for his career moving him into third all-time at Evangel.
All-Time Sack Leaders
1. Jay Hellwig, 1991-94 45.5
2. Lamont Wynn, 1998-01 30
3. Josh Evans, 2014-present 28
4. Harvey Berrien, 1994-97 27
► After just two touchdowns last season, junior Dallas Hester (Strafford, Mo.) caught his fourth touchdown of the season against MNU on Saturday. Hester now has 12 scores for his career moving into 9th all-time in the Evangel record books. The all-time leader is James Feazell (29) and next on the list is current assistant coach Edward Sands with 16.
► After missing the previous week's game, sophomore Cameron Hardesty returned to complete 13-of-22 for 155 yards and three touchdowns. Hardesty now has 11 passing touchdowns on the season and just two interceptions after throwing his first last week against MNU since the opening week at Grand View.
LOOKING AHEAD
Evangel heads to Avila for the final meeting as members of the Heart with the Eagles who will become members of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference next season. The game will be broadcast locally on Mediacom 22 and nationally on ESPN3 and the Watch ESPN App. Kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m.
For the latest information on Evangel Athletics, follow the Crusaders on Facebook at Facebook.com/EvangelAthletics or go to www.EvangelAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the Go Evangel Front Row App at EvangelAthletics.com/FrontRow available on Google Play and in the App Store.
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