No. 14 Iowa State Falls At West Virginia, 20-16

MORGANTOWN, W. Va. – The No. 14 Iowa State football team (6-3, 4-2 Big 12) fell on the road, 20-16, to West Virginia (6-3, 4-2 Big 12), snapping the Cyclones' four-game winning streak.

West Virginia jumped out to a 20-0 lead in the first half, which proved too much for the Cyclones to overcome. The ISU defense held WVU scoreless in the second half as the Cyclones scored 16 unanswered points, but the Cyclone comeback fell short in the closing minutes.

Keys of the Game…
It was the tale of two halves for the Cyclones, as the Mountaineers started off hot, grabbing as much as a 20-point lead. WVU started off with a 63-yard pass from Will Grier to Ka'Raun White, which set up a 10-yard touchdown to David Sills to put WVU 7-0. Making quick work on offense, WVU made it 20-0 after capitalizing on an ISU interception and connecting on another long reception from Grier to White for a 55-yard touchdown.

ISU would get on the board in the second quarter after a 42-yard field goal by Garrett Owens. The Cyclones entered the locker room with a 20-3 deficit, which was the Cyclones halftime deficit of the season.

The offense came out of the half strong, putting together a 10-play, 86-yard drive to cut the Mountaineer lead to 10 after a 1-yard touchdown from Kempt to Allen Lazard. The touchdown was Lazard's sixth touchdown catch of the year and 22nd in his career. ISU wasn't done yet, as the Owens connected on back-to-back field goals bring ISU within four of the Mountaineers with 7:19 remaining in the fourth quarter.

With the Mountaineers threatening to put the game out of reach for the Cyclones, it was D'Andre Payne who intercepted Grier's pass in the end zone with 4:57 to play. The interception was Payne's first of his career. Despite the interception, Iowa State was unable to score, turning the ball over on downs. WVU would out the clock to close the game.

Players of Note….
Kempt finished the afternoon 27-of-40 for 249 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

Running back David Montgomery led the Cyclones with 115 yards on the ground, marking his fourth 100-yard game of the season and sixth of his Iowa State career.

Marchie Murdock finished the day with a career-high six receptions for 52 yards.

Hakeem Butler led the Cyclones with four catches and a team-high 62 yards

On the defense, it was Payne who led the way with a team-high nine tackles. He also finished with one TFL, one pass breakup and his first-career interception.

Cyclone Quick Hits

* ISU is 6-3 overall, its best nine-game mark since 2005 (6-3).
*ISU has held all six conference foes under their respective season scoring averages.
* Allen Lazard has now caught a pass in 44-straight games.
*Lazard becomes the first player in school history with four, 40+ reception seasons.
*Owens matched his season-long field goal (42) and is 4-of-6 on 40+ yard attempts.
*Trever Ryen has a reception in 22 of the last 23 games.
*Ryen finished with six catches, tying his career high.
*Deshaunte Jones is over 20 catches on the season, giving ISU six players over 20 catches on the season for the fourth time in school history.
*ISU opponents are now 2-for-8 on fourth down this season (0-for-1 today).

Up Next
Iowa State returns to Jack Trice Stadium to take on No. 11 Oklahoma State (7-1, 4-1) on Senior Day on Saturday, Nov. 11. The time and channel have yet to be announced.

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Team Stats

Kyle Kempt

Players Mentioned

Hakeem Butler

Deshaunte Jones

Allen Lazard

David Montgomery

Marchie Murdock

Garrett Owens

D'Andre Payne

Trever Ryen