DILLON — Make it two wins over ranked opponents in two weekends for Montana Tech's football team.
The No. 5 Orediggers held No. 18 Montana Western scoreless in the second half and Jamal Cariglia piled up 203 rushing yards while delivering the game-sealing score in the fourth quarter as Tech rolled to a 34-7 win a week after defeating 11th-ranked Carroll College.
Tech improved to 3-0 while Western fell to 1-1.
WATCH THE HIGHLIGHTS:
Tech struck first a 4-yard touchdown run from Jarrett Wilson midway through the second quarter and then tacked on a 24-yard touchdown pass from Wilson to Gunnar Peterson off a screen pass early in the second quarter to lead 14-0 with 13:12 remaining in the half.
Western responded on its next drive with a 75-yard catch-and-run touchdown from Kaden LaPlaunt to Eli Nourse to cut the lead to 14-7. The Orediggers then tacked on a pair of field goals from Casey Kautzman at the end of the first half and midway through the third quarter to take a 20-7 lead.
Then in the fourth quarter Cariglia scored on a 1-yard run to push Tech's lead to 27-7 with 7:47 left in the game. Western's ensuing drive ended with an interception by Brett Grange and then Merek Mihelish scored on a 45-yard run for the game's final score.
Tech amassed 306 rushing yards on 40 carries while holding Western to 67 yards on the ground. The Orediggers had 474 yards of total offense to the Bulldogs 287.
Tech will now host Southern Oregon on Sept. 19 while Western will host Rocky Mountain College.
