The Lindenwood football team could not overcome the second quarter of its game on Saturday night in Pittsburg, Kan. No. 5 Pittsburg State scored five unanswered touchdowns in that period which led the Gorillas to a 56-28 win over the Lions.
 
Lindenwood's offense was nearly perfect in the first quarter as the team jumped out to a 14-7 lead. In the opening drive, the Lions went 76 yards for a touchdown. Greg Coble had two receiving plays over 20 yards, and Calen Campbell scored on a six-yard run. After Pittsburg State tied the game, it took Lindenwood just five plays to retake the lead. Tre' Roby got loose and scored on a 63-yard touchdown reception.
 
That lead lasted until 13 seconds into the second quarter. Pittsburg State scored on the first play on a fourth-and-two from the 23-yard line. That was the first of several Lindenwood struggles on fourth downs during the period. The Lions would have two punts blocked, another punt go for 22 yards, and a turnover on downs in their next four possessions. Pittsburg State scored touchdowns after all four of those drives, including one on a fourth-down play, and it led 42-14 at halftime.
 
The Gorillas extended their advantage after scoring on the first possession of the second half. The Lions responded with their most impressive drive of the young season, going 98 yards in 18 plays. Lindenwood converted two third downs and a fourth-and-19 on the drive, with the latter coming a 21-yard pass to DeSean Warren. Lavorrie Johnson ended the drive with a three-yard run into the endzone, and that ended the third-quarter scoring with Pittsburg State leading 49-21.
 
Lindenwood got seven points closer early in the fourth quarter with another double-figure play drive. This time, Lindenwood went 66 yards on 11 plays for a touchdown. Campbell found the endzone again on a 28-yard rush. Pittsburg State scored one more touchdown for the final points of the game, and it recorded three interceptions in the quarter to keep the Lions off the scoreboard for the remainder of the game.
 
Jesse Scroggins finished the game with 235 passing yards and he had one touchdown pass. Campbell had a team-high 68 rushing yards, and Roby led the team with 86 receiving yards. Both Coble and Warren also finished with over 60 receiving yards.
 
Connor Harris extended his double-figure tackle streak to seven games with 17, including 14 solo tackles. Bakari Triggs was second on the team with eight tackles, and Skyler Crall had the team's only sack.
 
Game Notes: Lindenwood falls to 1-1 overall and 1-1 in MIAA play … Pittsburg State improves to 2-0 on the year and in conference play … the Gorillas now lead the all-time series 3-1, and they became the first home team to win in the series history between the two programs … the Lions are now 1-8 against nationally-ranked teams at the NCAA Division II level, and 0-4 against top-10 programs … the Lions finished the game with 436 yards of total offense, seven more than the Gorillas, and they had over 300 yards of passing … Pittsburg State had five of its 12 drives start in Lindenwood territory … Lindenwood returns home next Saturday to face Fort Hays State at 6 p.m. at Hunter Stadium.