December 5, 2015 - Hutchinson, KS (updated Dec. 10, 2015)

The Western States Football League (WSFL) Champion Snow College Badgers ended their season at 10-1 with a convincing 38-14 win over Dodge City Community College (Kansas) in the 7th annual Salt City Bowl played in Hutchinson, Kan. Snow's 21st postseason appearance improved the Badgers' performance in bowl games to an impressive 16-5 record and moved them up one spot to No. 2 in the NJCAA final season rankings.

Sophomore quarterback Stefan Cantwell, the game's eventual offensive MVP, started off the scoring with a perfect 27-yard touchdown pass to tight end Hunter Marshall. Cantwell continued the scoring on a 19-yard scoring run early in the second quarter to put the Badgers ahead 14-0. Dodge City quarterback Thomas Lazzaro answered back with a pair of touchdown runs himself (2 yards and 1 yard) to tie the score at 14 going into halftime.

Following a scoreless third period, the fourth quarter was a "Snow storm" as the Badgers blew the game open by scoring 24 points while shutting out the Conquistadors. Three second half fumbles, along with a stingy Snow defense which recorded six sacks, were the deciding factor in the game. Snow fumbled five times but lost the ball only once, while Dodge City lost all three of its fumbles in the game.

Led by defensive MVP Justus Brown, the Badgers held Dodge City to just 45 yards rushing and 222 yards of total offense. Brown finished with five tackles from his defensive back position including one of the Badgers' 13 tackles for loss in the game. Badger freshman defensive back Jantz Arbon tallied a team-high six tackles and sophomore defensive end Cardon Malan turned in two-and-a-half of Snow's six sacks. Malan, lineman Handsome Tanielu and linebacker Kurtis Taufa each finished with five tackles.

Snow's offensive line, led by WSFL Offensive Player of the Year tackle Garett Bolles, did not allow Dodge City to sack Cantwell. Bolles is the first collegiate lineman to ever be named his league's offensive player of the year.

Cantwell dominated the day accounting for four of the Badgers' five touchdowns. Snow's 6'2, 230-pound quarterback followed his second quarter 19-yard TD ramble with a pair of seven-yard scoring runs in the fourth quarter to go along with his 27-yard scoring strike to Marshall to open the game's scoring. Riley Richmond threw for the other Badger touchdown on a double pass when he lined up at wide receiver and tossed a 28-yard TD pass to a wide-open tight end Dalton Fackrell which put Snow ahead for good at the 9:58 mark in the fourth period.

Overall, passionate and physical play lifted the Badgers to victory according to Head Coach Britt Maughan. "Winning 10 games in a season is quite an accomplishment," Maughan stated when asked about the season. "It goes to show how much effort these players put into the year. As a coaching staff, we couldn't be more proud of these players and what they have accomplished. They made Snow College very proud this season."

Asked what he would miss about playing with Snow, Cantwell replied, "The brotherhood this team has is something I'll never forget. The bus rides, the long practices and workouts throughout the year, make me honored to play alongside my brothers. Today, we are all proud to be called Badgers."

Dodge City fell to 9-3 with the loss and 0-6 all-time in NJCAA bowl games. The loss dropped the Conquistadors two spots to No. 11 in the final NJCAA football poll which came out on Tuesday, Dec. 8. Snow moved up to No. 2 in the rankings behind National Champion Northwest Mississippi. The WSFL was a perfect 3-0 in bowl games with No. 19 Arizona Western beating No. 9 DuPage (Illinois), 14-5, and Scottsdale (Arizona) getting by No. 17 Central Lakes (Minnesota), 42-34. Northwest Mississippi routed former No. 2 Rochester (Minnesota), 66-13, to drop the Yellowjackets to No. 6 in the final rankings.