POCATELLO, Idaho — The Eastern Washington Eagles (2-4; 1-2 Big Sky) built a big lead but couldn't hold on as they fell to the Idaho State Bengals (2-4; 2-1) on Saturday afternoon in Pocatello, 42-41. Eastern's Efton Chism III reached 2,000 career receiving yards on a career night for the junior wideout, piling up 161 yards on 13 catches and 2 touchdowns.
 
After a dominant first half that saw the Eagles outscore ISU 35-14, the offense went cold in the second, scoring just 6 more points in the final 30 minutes of play. A 38-yard EWU field goal attempt to retake the lead with just seconds remaining leaked right, securing the win for the Bengals, who put up 21 points in the 4^th quarter alone.
 
"It was a tale of two halves," said head coach Aaron Best.
 
The Eagle offense came out of the gate flying inside the Holt Arena, jumping out to a 21-0 lead early in the 2^nd quarter after a touchdown to Chism and back-to-back rushing scores from running back Tuna Altahir (with 1:08 left in the 1^st) and utility man Michael Wortham (30 seconds into the 2^nd).
 
After ISU found the endzone for the first time on a 38-yard rush by Soujah Gasu early in the 2^nd frame but the Eagles responded with two more touchdowns — Chism's second of the day and freshman Miles Williams' first career — to take a commanding 28-point lead, 38-7 with 1:15 left in the opening half.
 
From there, things unraveled.
 
The Bengals scored the game's final five touchdowns, disrupted only by a pair of Soren McKee field goals in the 3^rd quarter. Receiver Chedon James, who finished with 206 yards and 1 TD on 15 catches, found the endzone just before halftime to cap a clean 75-play scoring drive by the Bengals' offense.
 
"We didn't rush the passer well enough, or consistently well enough, to get (ISU QB Jordan Cooke) off the spot. They made a ton of plays," added Best. "There were so many opportunities where we could've stopped the momentum, but we just didn't grasp it, didn't stop it, and when we did, we didn't do as much with it as we could. In that first half we did that, and in the second half we didn't."
 
ISU scored again with 46 seconds left in the 3rd (Cyrus Wallace reception), 10:06 left in the 4th (Gasu rush), 3:28 left (Aaron Blancas reception) and 52 seconds left (1-yard QB rush).
 
Quarterback Kekoa Visperas, who returned to action after missing Eastern's last game, led a precise drive with under a minute remaining to get the Eagles to the ISU 21-yard-line, but Eastern couldn't convert the ensuing field goal attempt. Visperas also set career marks in the game, throwing for over 400 yards (403) for the first time in his young tenure behind center for the Eagles.
 
ISU's Jordan Cooke finished 25-of-39 passing for 389 yards and 2 TD as the Bengals racked up 572 total yards on offense, scoring 28 points in the second half.
 
Eastern forced two turnovers — both interceptions by safety Armani Orange — and gave up none, marking the second game in a row in which the Eagles won the turnover battle but lost the game. They are now 70-6 since 2010 when doing so.
 
The game also marks the first loss to Idaho State since 2005, snapping a 12-game winning streak in the all-time series.
 
Eastern drops to 2-4 overall on the season, 1-2 in the Big Sky Conference. They host the Weber State Wildcats at Roos Field in Cheney on Saturday, Oct. 21, with kickoff scheduled for 4 p.m.
 

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Eastern's next home game is Saturday, October 21 vs. Weber State. It will be Homecoming Weekend at Roos Field in Cheney as we celebrate 100 years of EWU Homecoming. Tickets for Oct. 21 and all EWU Athletics events are available at goeags.com/tickets or via the EWU Athletics Ticket Office at 509-359-6059.
 
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
 
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