Turnovers and an anemic offense hurt the Mavs football team Saturday against CSU-Pueblo. The eighth-ranked Thunderwolves beat the Mavericks 27-7.

“We need to take the positives from this game and come together to win,” defensive end Domonique Lewis said.

The Maverick offense came out strong in the first quarter on freshman Jordan Price’s 102-yard kickoff return. Price’s return came only 14 seconds after the Thunderwolves’ first scoring drive, and tied up the game 7-7.

CSU-Pueblo finished the half with a touchdown to head to halftime with a score of 14-7.

“We felt that we could make a run for that win,” Lewis said. “But again, we didn’t help our cause with dumb penalties and big plays we had on defense.”

CMU’s first drive in the third quarter ended with a Thunderwolves’ interception. The Thunderwolves had four interceptions in the contest.

The Maverick offense remained silent in the second half as the Thunderwolves offense began to heat up. A four-yard pass play in the third quarter increased the Thunderwolves’ lead to 21-7. Before heading into the final quarter, CSU-Pueblo scored on a 42-yard field goal, making the score 24-7.

In the fourth quarter, the Mavericks had three turnovers. CSU-Pueblo scored for the final time on a 26-yard field goal, closing out the game with a score of 27-7.

“We were in a prime position for a comeback,” Lewis said. “We beat ourselves again.”

CMU’s Trevor DeBraga led the team with 17 tackles. Lewis added eight tackles and had the Maverick’s only sack of the night. Travis McRae recorded the Maverick’s only interception of the game, picking the ball in the Mavs end zone. The Mavericks had only 226 yards compared to CSU-Pueblo’s 430 total yards.

On Saturday, the Mavericks travel to Gunnison to take on Western State at 1 p.m.

cncooper@mavs.coloradomesa.edu