ARKADELPHIA -- Emporia (Kan.) State didn't need record-setting senior quarterback Brent Wilson to beat Henderson State.
Instead, all the Hornets needed was record-setting place-kicker Austin Morton.
Morton kicked a school-record five field goals, and Emporia State limited error-prone HSU to 137 total yards in a 29-3 victory in the second round of the NCAA Division II playoffs before an announced crowd of 1,129 on a cold, rainy Saturday afternoon at Carpenter-Haygood Stadium.
Emporia State (11-2) is at Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association rival Northwest Missouri in a quarterfinal game next week.
A week after securing the school's first postseason victory since moving to NCAA Division II in 1993, HSU (11-2) had its 10-game winning streak snapped.
The Reddies held Wilson, Emporia State's all-time leading passer and a nominee for the Harlon Hill Trophy, NCAA Division II's equivalent of the Heisman Trophy, to 63 passing yards, a career-low total as a starter.
But that was offset by five field goals from Morton (41, 40, 25, 30 and 31 yards), 179 rushing yards by freshman tailback Landon Nault and a suffocating defense.
HSU had almost as many turnovers (five) as first downs (six) through three quarters.
"That's a different way to win a game, isn't it?" Emporia State Coach Garin Higgins said, glancing at the stat sheet following the game.
Higgins said he called an audible before the game, ditching his normal pass-first philosophy because of steady rain and temperatures in the low 40s.
Wilson, the 2015 MIAA Offensive Player of the Year, entered with 3,857 passing yards this fall to rank second in NCAA Division II, but he was only 6 of 14 passing Saturday. He was intercepted twice, pushing HSU's NCAA Division II-leading total to 29 this fall.
Wilson attempted only four passes in the second half after Morton gave the Hornets a 16-0 halftime lead on a 25-yard field goal with three seconds remaining in the second quarter.
Morton, a sophomore from Rockwall, Texas, kicked a 33-yard field goal as time expired to give Emporia State a 51-49 first-round victory at Minnesota State.
Wilson had 437 passing yards in that game to become the school's career leader (8,234).
"Very proud of how our football team played today," Higgins said. "We found a different way to win the football game. I thought defensively we played outstanding. We set the tempo early. Offensively, the way the weather was today for us, it definitely changed about how we go about scoring points."
Nault scored Emporia State's only offensive touchdown on his 28th and final carry, a 58-yard burst around left end with 5:17 remaining in the game.
The Hornets finished 331 total yards, including a season-high 268 rushing on 56 attempts.
Trailing 22-0, HSU's only points came on a 32-yard field goal by sophomore place-kicker Houston Ray with 11:48 remaining in the game.
Junior tailback Jaquan Cole, the 2015 Great American Conference Offensive Player of the Year, was held to 70 rushing yards on 16 carries.
The Hornets recorded 3 sacks for 32 yards in losses and had 10 additional tackles for 59 yards in losses. HSU was 1 of 16 on third-down conversions.
"They really stopped our run game today," Reddies Coach Scott Maxfield said. "Thought that was really a huge factor for them."
Emporia State's other touchdown was scored by junior nose guard Eddie Vinson, who recovered a fumble in the end zone for a 10-0 lead with 11:36 remaining in the first half.
Vinson's recovery came after junior punter Evan Lassiter couldn't field a center snap.
Lassiter also had another punt blocked, and Ray missed a 33-yard field-goal attempt early in the second quarter.
The Reddies, who entered No. 5 in NCAA Division II in turnover ratio (plus-17), lost 4 of 7 fumbles and threw 2 interceptions.
"The things that have been getting us to this point of winning games, I think, kind of backfired on us today," Maxfield said. "We've won the turnover battles throughout the year, and today it was the exact opposite."
HSU's first interception -- in a scoreless game -- resulted in a touchback when a fade pass in the back corner of the end zone deflected off senior wide receiver JaVante Mack into the hands of junior safety J.P. Lohrentz.
Emporia State subsequently drove 57 yards to the HSU 23, but Morton missed a 40-yard field-goal attempt when it hit the left upright.
Morton wouldn't miss again and, eventually, set a single-season school record for field goals (21).
"We know he's a great kicker," Nault said. "Now everyone else does, too."
Sports on 11/29/2015