By R.J. COOPER

Special to The Hays Daily News

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. -- Fort Hays State University's chance of ending a three-year stretch of road futility sailed through senior Bryan Haynes' hands in the closing seconds Saturday.

With it went the Tigers' upset hopes in a 31-28 loss to Missouri Western at Spratt Stadium. Fort Hays now has lost 16 road games in a row, but this one came by a narrow margin.

Through three quarters Saturday, the Griffons (2-4, 1-3) looked poised for a comfortable victory, ahead 31-14.

Then Tiger sophomore backup quarterback Anthony Smith ran for two fourth-quarter touchdowns, and his pass with six seconds remaining fell through Haynes' hands at Western's 5-yard line to preserve the victory.

"We had a few balls we would like to have back, but they just kept fighting all day long," Fort Hays coach Kevin Verdugo said.

Smith -- Fort Hays' top receiver entering this game -- started at quarterback in place of Mike Garrison, who is out with a broken jaw sustained in last week's 27-7 loss to Truman State (Mo.) University. Smith struggled, completing just six of his 16 passes with three interceptions. Jarrett Morris returned the first 82 yards to set up Western's third score -- a 1-yard sneak by quarterback Drew Newhart that put the Griffons up 21-0 at halftime. Ian Thompson returned the second one 69 yards for a score, and the third stopped a Fort Hays drive in Western territory.

"The secondary was looking to take full advantage of that because you know he hasn't taken that many snaps and he isn't very comfortable in the pocket," Thompson said. "We were looking to attack."

The Griffons needed every stop they could muster with their offense misfiring in the second half.

Western finished with 195 yards of offense and 189 yards on interception returns. Newhart -- after finding Billy Babcock and Cedric Houston for first-half touchdowns -- threw a pick-six of his own and fumbled in the second half.

He threw for just 128 yards -- his lowest total of the season -- though both quarterbacks had to battle a swift southern wind throughout.

Western kicker Dustin Strickler made a 41-yard field goal into that wind with 7:03 left in the third quarter, while Fort Hays' Nathan Rausa missed a 45-yard attempt in the first quarter -- his first miss of the season -- which turned out to be the difference.

The Griffons defense stymied Smith and the Tigers (2-4, 1-3) for three quarters. C.J. Lovett's 54-yard punt return for a touchdown at the start of the third quarter and Jason Carr's 14-yard interception return provided Fort Hays' points through 45 minutes of play.

But Smith ran wild in the fourth quarter -- mostly out of the spread formation -- and the Griffons couldn't stop him. He finished with 134 yards on the ground, but orchestrating a potential game-winning drive with 1:42 left and no timeouts is a tough task for a one-dimensional offense. The Tigers just ran out of time.

"I take the blame for all the picks and missed reads," Smith said. "I'm always good on my feet. I'm surprised I didn't throw it as well as I can."

Verdugo had a different take on his quarterback's play after just five days of practice at the position.

"I told him I have never been more proud of him," Verdugo said.

And Smith had a warning for the Tigers' future opponents.

"Look for this team to have more victories in the future," he said, "and for us to grow from this game."