Brian McNeill ran for a career-high 272 yards and four touchdowns leading UNO to a 42-14 homecoming victory over Missouri Western Saturday afternoon at Caniglia Field.

The Mavericks racked up a season-high 589 yards in snapping a two-game losing streak. The 272 yards put up by McNeill is the third-best rushing total for a single game in school history.

Defense reigned supreme for much of the first half. The Mavericks put the only points on the board when McNeill ran the ball in from 13 yards out to cap an 87-yard drive.

The Mavs doubled their lead just 2:19 into the second half when McNeill ran for a 10-yard touchdown.

The Griffons countered later when a snap from center sailed over quarterback Zach Miller’s head and Bradley Davidson fell on the ball in the end zone to make it 14-7 UNO.

McNeill picked up his third touchdown of the day early in the fourth quarter when he got free down the left sideline and ran untouched for 47 yards.

Missouri Western answered when Thomas Hodges capped a 79-yard drive with a 3-yard run to close the gap to 21-14.

The Mavericks covered 62 yards in just four plays on their next possession. The last play was a 27-yard run by Miller for his eighth rushing touchdown of the season. Just 4:10 later, McNeill earned his final touchdown of the day with a 26-yard dash.

The UNO defense completed the scoring when Jacob Chandler picked off a pass from quarterback Drew Newhart and scampered 46 yards for the score.

The Mavericks surrendered just 36 yards on the ground. Missouri Western had 221 yards of total offense.

The Mavericks (4-2, 3-2 in MIAA) visit Pittsburg State next Saturday.