ABILENE, Texas (Football) – In the final game of the 2014 season, Texas A&M University-Kingsville (2-9) played its most balanced game, forcing seven turnovers and Trey Mitchell accounted for three touchdowns as the Javelinas defeated McMurry University (2-8), 41-16, on Saturday evening at Wilford Moore Stadium. With the win, the Hogs finish the Lone Star Conference Tournament seventh and the War Hawks place eighth. The win ends an eight-game losing streak for TAMUK.
 
McMurry struggled to hold onto the ball, losing five fumbles and throwing two interceptions and Mitchell finished the playoff contest 16-of-28 for 174 yards and a touchdown and added 93 rushing yards and two touchdowns. The stifling defense did not allow the War Hawks to enter the red zone and limited MU to 1-of-7 on third-down conversions. Joe Te'o scored two touchdowns on the ground and Jamal Foote and Trevor Moses each forced a fumble. Overall, the Javelinas ran 86 plays and registered 26 first downs.
 
"Coaches James Jefferson, Zane Brown, Tressor Baptiste, Stephen Guyton and the rest of the defensive staff really emphasized on playing physical and our guys played well," said interim head coach Jaime Martinez. "Offensively, we were able to stick to our game plan and run the ball and control the clock. Trey played well and our special teams forced a ton of turnovers. It is a great feeling to end the season with a win, especially for our seniors that have been influential for a number of years."
 
A quick start by the War Hawks put the Javelinas down 7-0 15 seconds into the contest after a historic touchdown by Jeret Smith.
 
A punt by the Hogs grazed a McMurry returner and the Javelinas' Braedon Robinson jumped on top of the football to regain possession at the home-40 yard line. Mitchell found Jordan Thomas for a 14-yard pass and Shawn Vasquez rushed for 11 yards, but on fourth-and-six, the Blue and Gold could not convert in the red zone and turned the ball over on downs.
 
The defense came up big with 4:55 left in the opening frame as Moses forced the second fumble of the evening to give the Hogs the ball on McMurry territory. After Vasquez's five-yard rush on fourth-and-one, Te'o's 21-yard run tied the game at 7-7 with 3:06 remaining in the first.
 
One the ensuing drive for the War Hawks, the stingy Hogs defense forced yet another fumble as Foote and Tre Oliver gave TAMUK possession of the football at midfield. However, the penalties continued to mount as the Javelinas picked up their fifth penalty of the quarter. After one, the Hogs and War Hawks were tied at 7-7.
 
After six scoreless minutes to begin the second quarter, the Hogs picked up their fourth fumble recovery and second on special teams as the War Hawks continued to struggle on the return. With the ball on the McMurry 17-yard line, Mitchell rushed for 10 yards and followed with a seven-yard touchdown run to give the Javelinas a 13-7 lead with 8:20 left in the first half.
 
A failed fourth down conversion by McMurry was followed by a 23-yard rush by Greg Pitre as Texas A&M-Kingsville entered the MCM red zone. Two plays later, the War Hawks forced a fumble to escape their own territory unscathed, trailing 13-7 with less than four minutes remaining in the second.
 
After punting the ball to Kingsville, the Javelinas drove down the field for 10-plays, 67 yards to end the first half with an 11-yard touchdown score as Mitchell found Chaz Adams for Adams' first ever touchdown as a Javelina. After the extra-point attempt, the Hogs entered halftime with a 20-7 lead. Mitchell rushed for 72 yards and a touchdown, Te'o added 32 yards and a score and Max Lehnig pinned the War Hawks inside the 20 once. Mitchell was 10-of-19 with 80 yards and a throwing touchdown in the first. Defensively, Brandon James tallied six tackles, 1.5 tackles for a loss and Foote and Oliver each recorded tackles for losses.
 
A long drive to begin the second half ends with no points as Mitchell was stopped at the one-yard line with 6:07 left in the third. However, the defense stood tall, highlighted by Henry Greathouse's sack to force McMurry to punt from its own one-yard line. The Hogs began their possession from the 24-yard line. A 23-yard reception by Patrick LaFleur brought the Javelinas back to the one-yard line and two plays later, Te'o rushed for his second touchdown of the game and fourth of the season to give TAMUK a 27-7 lead with 2:37 remaining in the third quarter.  Through three, the Javelinas led 27-7.
 
The War Hawks drove down the field but on a quarterback hurry by AA Vaaulu, Anthony Forker came up with an interception in the end zone with 14:19 left in the fourth. After a safety gave the War Hawks two points, a Kingsville free kick was fumbled by MCM – the fifth fumble of the evening for the War Hawks – and recovered by Trevor Pesek, giving the Javelinas another drive with 10:30 left in the fourth.
 
Mitchell found Musa Mahmud for an 11-yard pass and Vasquez rushed for 19 yards to bring the Hogs into the red zone. Mitchell capped off the play with his second rushing touchdown of the game as TAMUK tacked on seven points with 8:09 left in the contest.
 
The War Hawks found the end zone on a deep pass late in the fourth. Vasquez capitalized on big plays from Alex Rios to LaFleur and Mahmud and rushed for his fifth touchdown of the season with 1:15 left.
 
The Javelinas capped off its highest scoring game of the season with an interception by Kelechi Amushie and ended its losing streak with a 41-16 win.