Box Score (ST. JOSEPH, Mo.) – The St. Joe woes continued for the 12^th-ranked Central Missouri Mules football team as they fell 23-6 to Missouri Western on Saturday night at Spratt Memorial Stadium. The Mules have now lost five straight games to the Griffons in St. Joseph and were held without a touchdown for the first time since 1997.
      The Mules' (1-1, 1-1 MIAA) offense couldn't get on track in the opening stanza going three-and-out on four of its first five possessions. That other drive garnered just one first down as the Mules were held to 14 yards of total offense in the first quarter.
      The Griffons (1-1, 1-1 MIAA) got on the board on their second drive when quarterback Travis Partridge scrambled right before angling back to his left and outracing the UCM defenders to the end zone for a 68-yard touchdown run. The extra point made it 7-0 with 4:55 to play in the first quarter.
      Missouri Western extended the lead to 14-0 when Partridge hooked up with Tarrell Downing for a 14-yard touchdown early in the second quarter. The Mules had sacked Partridge on the first play of the drive to push MWSU back to its own 30, but a facemask penalty gave the Griffons an automatic first down and great field position in UCM territory.
      Following another three-and-out by the Mules, the Griffons took over near midfield and drove into field goal range where Greg Zuerlein nailed a 45-yard field goal to put Missouri Western up 17-0.
      The offense started to wake up on the next possession when Tommy Corwin hooked up with Taylor Dyer for a 33-yard completion down to the Griffon five-yard line. Camren Torneden took the ball down to the one on first down, but a fumble moved the ball back to the four and the Mules couldn't convert on third and goal and had to settle for an Aaron Jamieson 21-yard field goal to pull within 17-3.
      UCM got the ball back near mid-field with just over three minutes to play in the half and drove to the Missouri Western 12 thanks in part to a late hit penalty, but on first and 10 Corwin's pass was tipped into the air and picked off by Ben Pister. MWSU knelt on the ball from its own 20 and went into halftime with a 17-3 lead.
      The Central Missouri defense forced a three-and-out on the first possession of the second half, but on the first play following the punt Corwin had his pass tipped at the line of scrimmage and picked off by Jeremy Weston near midfield.
      The Mules got the ball back in great field position when Brett Ginn recovered a fumble at the UCM 48-yard line. The Mules drove to the Griffon 25-yard line, but the drive stalled and following a holding penalty Jamieson drilled a school-record 53-yard field goal to pull the Mules to within 17-6 with 5:02 to play in the third quarter.
      The Griffons added a 51-yard field goal by Zuerlein in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter to extend the lead to 20-6.
      Following a missed field goal by Zuerlein, the Mules moved the ball into Griffon territory only to have the drive stopped by a Weston interception, his second of the game, at the MWSU 35. Taylor Anderson added a 21-yard field goal with just over three minutes left in the game to pad the Griffons lead at 23-6.
      The Mules drove to the Griffon 38 on the ensuing possession, but the Mules turned it over on downs and MWSU ran out the clock.
      The Mules managed just 178 yards of total offense compared to 347 for the Griffons. Corwin finished 18-of-36 for 158 yards and three picks, while his counterpart finished 14-of-26 for 109 yards and a TD. The Griffons pounded out 238 yards on the ground, while the Mules gained just 20 yards on 24 attempts.
      The six points scored were the lowest by a Mules team since a 3-0 win over Wisconsin-Whitewater to open the 1993 season.
      The Mules will look to bounce back next weekend when they travel to Emporia State for a 1 p.m. kickoff.