ST. GEORGE, Utah – Senior running back Joe Harris led Western Oregon with a career-best three rushing touchdowns, all coming after interceptions by the Wolves defense, in a 42-24 win over Dixie State on Friday in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
 
The Wolves evened its league record to 1-1 and improved to 2-3 overall on the season.
 
Harris shined for WOU, rallying for 90 rushing yards on 18 carries, including scoring runs from four, one and 13 yards.
 
Sophomore receiver Paul Revis hurt the Red Storm (1-4, 0-2 GNAC) through the air and in the return game. Revis had four receptions for 102 yards and one touchdown from starting quarterback David Sowards. He returned two punts into the end zone, one being called back after a penalty. An 81-yard return in the 4th quarter capped 42 unanswered points for Western Oregon after falling behind 10-0 after the first quarter.
 
Western Oregon's defense was the other half of the story, shutting down key Dixie State drives at the most opportune moment. The Red Storm did amass 500 yards of total offense after holding the ball for over 36 minutes, but WOU had big plays on the defensive side.
 
With Dixie State trying to extend a 10-7 lead in the second quarter, sophomore Trebriel Larry picked off a Blake Barney pass at the one-yard line to thwart the drive. After the turnover, Sowards hit Revis for a big 55-yard gain that put the Wolves into the red zone. Four plays later, Harris ran in the first of his scores to give WOU its first lead, 14-10.
 
In the final minutes of the third quarter, junior Danny Hankins nabbed a pick off Storm backup quarterback Tyson Blackner and returned it to the Dixie State 33-yard line. Again, Harris capped off the subsequent drive on the second play of the fourth quarter.
 
Western Oregon wasted no time with the third interception of the night. On the first play from scrimmage on the next DSU drive, sophomore Tyler Johnson dropped back into coverage and made the grab. Four straight handoffs to Harris pushed the Wolves' lead to 35-10.
 
Revis capped off the rally with an 81-yard punt return that included a few jukes and a handful of jives before crossing into the end zone.

Sowards finished with 199 passing yards on 11 of 24 passing with two touchdowns in his first WOU start.
 
Joining Revis as a primary target was freshman Keoni Piceno (2 rec, 71 yards), who had a 52-yard score in the second quarter. Also making multiple grabs was the returning Andy Avgi (2-15) and Kamakana Apelu (2-14).

Senior Roger Garrett led the defense with nine tackles with eight coming solo. Johnson had eight tackles and two sacks while senior Shane Kuenzi also had eight stops.
 
Western Oregon returns to McArthur Field on Oct. 10 hosting No. 8 North Alabama at 1:05 p.m.