Central Methodist lost its eighth game in a row Saturday, 58-7, to No. 25 Baker University. It was the final home game for the Eagles, who will conclude the season in St. Louis on Saturday against Heart newcomer Missouri Baptist.

It has been a tough rebuilding year under first-year head coach Dave Brown. He was a late hire after previous coach David Callaway resigned in February, three months after the Eagles concluded a disastrous 1-9 season, which began with the shooting death of one of his players at the hands of another just two days before the opening game.

While this season has not turned out how Eagles fans would have wished, the team has undeniably performed better under Brown and his staff than the team from a year ago. While the win-loss record may wind up the same after next week, Brown’s Eagles have scored almost three times the points than last year’s team, tallying 15.5 points per game compared to 5.5 points. CMU has suffered only one shutout this year. The 2022 team was held scoreless six times.

While it may not appear so on paper, Brown and his staff seem to be righting the ship. Rebuilding an NAIA Division I team is no easy task. Neither is doing so in the Heart of America Athletic Conference, which boasts three top-25 teams.

Saturday’s game was against one of those nationally ranked teams. Baker stepped on to Davis Field with a 6-2 overall record, having won four of its last five games. Its only losses of the season came against No. 2 Grand View and No. 14 Benedictine.

The Wildcats played worthy of their ranking on Saturday, scoring the first 31 points of the game during the first two quarters.

Central’s lone touchdown came late in the second quarter on a 10-yard pass and run. Junior running back Kam Cole hauled in a short pass from senior quarterback Joe Cambridge on the right sideline and dove over the Baker defender at the goal line to put the Eagles on the board. 

The touchdown capped off a seven-play, 75-yard drive to make the score 31-7 at halftime. 

Baker went on to score three more touchdowns and a field goal in the second half to walk away with the Heart victory.

The Wildcats picked up 534 total yards of offense without a turnover while holding Central to 167 total yards and two turnovers. 

Cambridge completed 17 of 32 passing attempts for 158 yards, one touchdown, and an interception. The senior playcaller spread the ball around to eight different receivers. Leading the way was A.J. Allen with four catches for 44 yards. Junior Drake Dudley hauled in three passes for 36 years, including a long of 20 yards. Senior Chase Rankin made three grabs for 29 yards. 

Cambridge also ran the ball seven times, finishing with a net loss of 17 yards on the ground.

The Eagles’ run game struggled, netting just nine yards all day. Sophomore Charles Johnson led the rushing game with six carries for 23 yards. 

Cole ran the ball twice for two yards. He also made one pass reception for Central’s touchdown in the second quarter.

On the defensive side, Dylan Holt recorded a team-high 16 tackles, including a tackle for loss. Ashton Stine was the other Eagle to record double-digit tackles with 13.

Joseph Slattery tallied nine tackles, followed by KeShawn Wilson, who added seven and a pass breakup.

The Eagles hope to double last season’s win total with a win on the road Saturday in St. Louis. Central’s only other win came in the second week of the season on the road at Culver-Stockton College.

A win at Missouri Baptist should dash any doubts for the Eagle faithful that Central is headed toward a brighter future. The Spartans are 1-8 on the season so far and have lost their last four games.

Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. on Saturday.