By: Michael Bennett 

NIXA, Mo. -- A late fourth-down defensive stop proved vital on Thursday night as the Evangel Valor opened the 2022 football season with a 31-20 victory over Clarke University.

The game was far closer than the final score indicated because the Valor scored in the last second after a fumble caused by defensive lineman Zach Myers.

The redshirt freshman also made the game-defining stop with 2:52 left as Clarke threatened deep in Valor territory. He raced into the backfield to make the tackle for a 5-yard loss that gave Evangel the ball back while nursing a 24-20 lead.

It followed an official measurement in which a run by Clarke came up just inches away from a first down.

"Zach made a huge play," said Valor wide receiver Dillon Hester (Strafford). "Sometimes it takes just one player to step up at the right moment. He did."

The Valor started their 46th season with aplomb at Eagles Stadium in Nixa. Hester scored the game's first touchdown on the second play. He caught a 13-yard pass over the middle from quarterback Hayden Conrad at 14:20.

That play followed a 50-yard run down the left sideline by Bryce Nyumah.

Andrew Holden's extra-point kick made it 7-0.

Clarke countered with a drive for a field goal before the Valor scored on another TD pass over the middle, this time from Conrad to Holden for 11 yards with 2:57 left in the quarter. Holden's kick made it 14-3.

Evangel took its fourth straight win against Clarke, a Heart of America foe that just started football in 2019. The Valor won 24-9 in last year's game at Dubuque, Iowa.

"I expected a tough game and it was," said Valor coach Chuck Hepola. "They have an experienced team and their quarterback is a very good player."

Indeed, Brandon Mueller hit 23 of 39 passes for 317 yards, including a 76-yard bomb to Gabe Deadwiler that narrowed Evangel's lead to 14-13 with 4:57 left in the second quarter.

Holden kicked a 24-yard field goal with 9 seconds left for a 17-13 Valor halftime lead.

Evangel scored on its first possession of the third quarter for a 24-13 advantage after Nyumah ran untouched for 14 yards. He led all runners with 86 yards.

Clarke countered with a 3-yard run by Craig Elmore with 9:20 left in the third quarter.

Clarke threatened several more times but never could score again against the determined Evangel defense. 

The Valor picked up a critical first down and then benefitted from a personal foul to help run the clock down to a few seconds after Myer's first tackle for loss.

Evangel's defense fought through other tight late moments late. It survived a muffed punt at the Valor  23 by forcing a missed field goal. Defensive back Nate Swafford swatted away a potential TD pass before that kick.

"I was very thrilled to see the defense seal the game at the end," Hepola said.

Michael Murray made nine catches for 89 yards and Hester had seven for 79 as Evangel rotated quarterbacks, Hayden Conrad, and R.J. Wakely.

The offense sputtered at times after the opening-drive scores of both halves. A lot of that was timing, Hester said. "A win is a win and we won," he said. "Our tempo wasn't as good as at practice. We have a lot to work on, but we will get better."

Hepola agreed on the timing: "We were getting used to a new tempo. We are playing faster," he said. "We showed how quickly we can score and also how we have to clean some stuff up."

He said the biggest improvement for teams is ordinarily from the first to second games.

Hepola said the finish was an example of what he preaches – that his team can expect five critical plays in a game. "That was an example of one that really helped us," he said of Myers' fourth-down stop. "He has a tremendous motor. It speaks volumes about the shape he is in (to make a big play late in the game)."

Joey Sylvester and Ian Ary led Evangel with nine tackles each, while Koel Orchard and Athanie Leeviraphan had seven each.

Evangel returns to action at Graceland (Iowa) on Saturday, Sept. 3. Kickoff from Lamoni, Iowa, is scheduled for 6 p.m.