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Indiana State University Athletics

Rose
16
Valparaiso VAL 1-2 , 0-0
39
Winner Indiana St. INS 2-2 , 0-0
Valparaiso VAL
1-2 , 0-0
16
Final
39
Indiana St. INS
2-2 , 0-0
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
VAL Valparaiso 3 0 7 6 16
INS Indiana St. 5 17 14 3 39

Game Recap: Football | | Seth Montgomery | GoSycamores.com

Sycamores run past Valparaiso with 39-16 win on Family Weekend

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Aaron Ball ran for 182 yards and a pair of touchdowns as the Sycamores racked up 313 rushing yards in Saturday afternoon's 39-16 win over Valparaiso on Family Weekend at Memorial Stadium.
 
Indiana State (2-2) recorded 26 consecutive points with Ball highlighting the stretch with touchdown runs of 59 and 58 yards on their way to building a 29-3 lead over the visiting Beacons (1-2) in the first matchup between the two programs since 1968. The Sycamore defense held Valparaiso to negative-seven rushing yards, the fewest allowed by an Indiana State defense in the Curt Mallory coaching era in the win.
 
The Sycamores utilized the run game as Ball (11 carries, 182 yards), Elijah Owens (10 carries, 66 yards), and Manny Ellis (eight carries, 52 yards) all showcased their abilities with the ball in their hands as Indiana State controlled the tempo of the contest. The Sycamore defense came through in the second half with four sacks and Arison Walker's first interception at Indiana State to limit any Valparaiso comeback attempt in securing the win.
 
Indiana State swung the momentum from a 3-3 contest midway through the first quarter as the Sycamores pressured the Beacons into a safety on a holding penalty inside the end zone. From there, the offense took over as Sebastian Lopez converted a 28-yard field goal, before Elijah Owens found Jaylan Johnson for a 19-yard touchdown pass to make it a 15-3 contest.
 
Aaron Ball scored a 59-yard rushing touchdown late in the second quarter, and then after an 82-minute lighting delay early in the third quarter, added a 58-yard rushing score to make it a 29-3 contest. After an injury took Owens out of the game in the first half, Brady Allen stepped in to find KeShon Singleton on a 16-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter and Lopez knocked through a 46-yard field goal attempt to cap the Sycamore scoring in the contest.
 
Owens finished 7-of-15 through the air for 115 yards and a touchdown, while adding 66 rushing yards on 10 carries before the injury. Allen was 10-of-15 for 98 yards with a touchdown and an interception, while Brock Riddle wrapped up the game under center going 2-for-3 for 42 yards through the air in his first action of the season.
 
Eleven different Indiana State players recorded receptions in a spread offense attack on Saturday afternoon led by Singleton (three catches, 37 yards, and a touchdown) and BJ Wuest (three catches, 34 yards). Jaylan Johnson (19-yard touchdown catch), Dane Pardridge, Tyler Stewart, and Aaron Ball also finished with multiple receptions in the game.
 
Alex Rose led Indiana State's defensive efforts with seven tackles, 1.5 sacks, and 1.5 tackles-for-loss in the contest. Mason Knipp added 1.5 TFL and 0.5 sacks among his five stops as the Sycamores posted 11.0 TFL overall in the contest.
 
How They Scored
  • Sebastian Lopez put the Sycamores on the board in the first quarter with a 36-yard field goal to cap a six-play, 35-yard drive as Indiana State went up 3-0 early.
  • Luke Scoma tied the game up with a 30-yard field goal with 5:31 remaining in the quarter to end a 10-play, 62-yard drive to make it a 3-3 contest.
  • Indiana State took the 5-3 lead on a Valparaiso safety with 2:52 remaining in the first quarter as a holding penalty in the end zone on 3rd-and-10 from the Beacons' 3-yard line lead to the two-point play.
  • The Sycamores added to the lead with a Sebastian Lopez 28-yard field goal with 11:54 remaining in the second quarter to cap a six-play, 71-yard drive highlighted by a 63-yard pass from Elijah Owens to Manny Harris to go up 8-3.
  • Indiana State went up 15-3 with 5:45 remaining in the second quarter as Jaylan Johnson caught a 19-yard touchdown pass from Elijah Owens on the seam route up the middle to end a 10-play, 50-yard drive.
  • The Sycamores added another touchdown before the end of the first half as Aaron Ball broke a 59-yard touchdown run down the left sideline to put Indiana State up 22-3 at the break.
  • Aaron Ball kept the momentum going in the third quarter as the Sycamore running back took a 58-yard rush to the house down the left sideline to put Indiana State up 29-3 with 10:35 on the clock.
  • Valparaiso scored their first touchdown of the contest with 7:01 remaining in the third quarter as Chris Gundy hauled in the 11-yard touchdown pass on the slant from Rowan Keefe to make it a 29-10 contest.
  • Brady Allen connected on a 16-yard touchdown pass to KeShon Singleton with 4:06 remaining in the third quarter to highlight a six-play, 75-yard drive to extend the Indiana State lead to 36-10.
  • Sebastian Lopez connected on his third field goal of the game, a 46-yard conversion, with 13:22 remaining in the fourth quarter to stake the Sycamores to a 39-10 lead.
  • Daniel White hauled in a 34-yard touchdown pass from Noah Ehrlich with 5:17 remaining in the contest to put Valparaiso's final points on the board. Kaleb Harris broke through the line of scrimmage to block the ensuing extra-point attempt to keep the margin at 39-16.
 
News & Notes
  • Indiana State picked up its sixth consecutive win against Valparaiso dating back to the 1964 season as the Sycamores topped the Beacons, 39-16.
  • The winning streak extends back to the 1964 season as Indiana State pulls back to 13-20-1 all-time against the Beacons.
  • Aaron Ball's 182 rushing yards marks the first time an Indiana State player broke the 100-yard rushing mark in the 2026 season.
  • Ball's 182 yards are a career-high for the junior running back and the most by a Sycamore since Nick Osho ran for 211 yards on 28 carries on October 4, 2025, at Southern Illinois.
  • Aaron Ball's 182-yard rushing effort is the first time a Sycamore running back broke the 100-yard rushing mark at home since Plez Lawrence recorded 21 carries for 133 yards and a pair of scores on August 28, 2025, against McKendree.
  • Elijah Owens went 7-for-15 for 115 yards and a touchdown through the air, while adding 10 carries for 66 yards before coming out of the game due to an injury following his 19-yard touchdown pass to Jaylan Johnson.
  • Elijah Owens wrapped up the game with 4,188 career total offensive yards, moving into eighth all-time in the Indiana State career Top 10 after surpassing Julian Reese (4,109 – 2001-02) and Ronnie Fouch (4,182, 2011-12).
  • Jaylan Johnson recorded his first collegiate touchdown reception after hauling in the 19-yard score in the second quarter.
  • Sebastian Lopez recorded his first collegiate three-field goal game after converting from 36, 28, and 46 on Saturday afternoon against Valparaiso.
  • Indiana State and Valparaiso sat through an 82-minute lightning delay with 14:11 on the clock in the third quarter. It marked the second consecutive season the Sycamores have had a game delayed by lightning after sitting through a 2:17 delay last season on October 18, 2025, against North Dakota State.
  • Alex Rose recorded a career-high 1.5 sacks on Saturday afternoon leading the Sycamores to a season-high 5.0 sacks in the game.
  • Luke Karras recorded his first collegiate sack in the fourth quarter of Saturday's game.
  • Arison Walker recorded his first interception with the Sycamores on Saturday afternoon.
  • Manny Ellis finished with 115 total all-purpose yards in the game after finishing with eight carries for 52 yards on the ground and one catch for 63 yards through the air – both career highs for the freshman running back.
  • Indiana State finishes non-conference play with a 2-2 mark overall marking the second consecutive season the Sycamores head into MVFC with a .500 record.
  • The Sycamore defense held Valparaiso to negative-seven rushing yards in the contest, the least amount allowed by an Indiana State defense in the Curt Mallory coaching era.
  • Indiana State defenses had previously held opponents to single-digits rushing twice with both coming in the 2022 season against North Alabama (8 – Sept. 1, 2022) and Western Illinois (9 – Nov. 12, 2022).
Postgame Press Conference

 
Up Next
Indiana State continues its homestand on Saturday, September 26, as the Sycamores open Missouri Valley Football play against North Dakota at Memorial Stadium. Kickoff between Indiana State and the Fighting Hawks is set for 1 p.m. ET and will be carried live on ESPN+ and 105.5 The Legend.
 
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