MEADVILLE,  Pa. – A week after pounding the ground in a Homecoming win over Hiram College, the Kenyon College football team took to the air Saturday and sailed to a 32-17 North Coast Athletic Conference victory over the host Allegheny College Gators.

Kenyon senior quarterback Jake Bates was beyond efficient. He completed 21-of-25 pass attempts (84 percent) for 276 yards and three touchdowns. The 21 completions were a season-high, while the 276 yards and three touchdowns were both career-bests for Bates.

Bates' got the Lords marching right away. On the team's opening drive, he directed an 11-play, 89-yard drive that chewed 4:28 off the clock. Big plays in the drive were a 25-yard pass to tight end Greg McIntosh and an 18-yard touchdown toss to running back Blake Calcei.

Allegheny failed to move the ball on its opening drive and Kenyon came right back at the Gators defense. After the punt, the Lords covered 61 yards in 12 plays and scored on a Calcei one-yard plunge. It was the team-leading fifth touchdown of the season for Calcei, who piled up 75 rushing yards and 18 receiving yards throughout the game.

The Gators (0-4, 0-3 NCAC) used a 43-yard rush from Tyler Smith to pull closer to the Lords before the quarter could end. Smith followed up the big run with a three-yard touchdown run. Because Kenyon converted both of its two-point attempts after its touchdowns, it held a 16-7 lead going into the second quarter.

Allegheny scored again on its next possession and cut its gap to two points, but Kenyon answered with a 27-yard field goal from Szabi Simo. The offenses continued to roll as the Gators booted in a field goal of their own, only to be answered by yet another Kenyon touchdown. Setting up at midfield after a 21-yard kick return from John Clark, Kenyon went to the air again. Bates hit Brian Hunca for a 38-yard gain and then connected with Ian Bell on a 14-yard scoring strike. That barrage put Kenyon ahead 26-17 at the half.

The defenses settled in during the second half of play and a third-quarter touchdown pass from Bates to Hunca put an end to all scoring. On two other occasions in the second half, Kenyon drove deep into Allegheny territory only to have one drive stall on downs and the other end on a missed field goal.

Allegheny threatened to score once more in the fourth quarter, but Kenyon sophomore Brandon Byrd pick off a Jon Nigro pass in the end zone.

With 276 yards in the air and 211 on the ground, Kenyon racked up 487 yards of total offense, its best output since putting up 561 yards in a 37-36 loss to the University of Chicago in the second game of the 2009 season.

While Bates and Calcei were the one-two punch, Hunca and freshman Rob Meagher made their presence known. Hunca finished with seven catches for 122 yards and the one score. Meagher led the Lords in rushing with 112 yards on 14 carries, cranking out a nice average of eight yards per carry.

Defensively, Kenyon held the Gators to just 11 first downs and 268 yards of offense. Allegheny managed just 45 plays, compared to Kenyon's 81. Kenyon possessed the ball for 39:05, while Allegheny held it for only 20:55. Kenyon was 11-of-17 on third-down plays, Allegheny was just 1-of-10.

The Lords (2-2, 2-1 NCAC) will return to McBride Field next Saturday to battle DePauw University (3-0, 2-0 NCAC), a team that has scored 45 or more points in each of its three games this season.