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Kenyon College Athletics

Dominic Simpson
Graham Stokes
7
Kenyon College KENF 1-1
28
Winner Kalamazoo KZOO 2-0
Kenyon College KENF
1-1
7
Final
28
Kalamazoo KZOO
2-0
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
KENF Kenyon College 0 0 7 0 7
KZOO Kalamazoo 7 7 7 7 28

Game Recap: Football |

Turnovers doom Kenyon in loss at Kalamazoo

KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- The Kenyon College defense played well Saturday, but the Kalamazoo College defense was the difference, as the host Hornets forced four turnovers, including a pair of pick-sixes, and handed the visiting Owls football team a 28-7 non-conference loss at Angell Field.

The Owls defense held the Hornets to just 114 rushing yards on 38 attempts and 115 passing yards on 14 completions. That averaged out to 3.43 yards per play for Kalamazoo. On the flip side, the Hornets defense yielded just 94 rushing yards on 29 attempts and 143 passing yards on 14 completions.

Despite its struggles, the Kalamazoo offense did strike quickly. In the Hornets' first drive of the game, Sheldon Riley broke free for a 45-yard touchdown run and cracked open the scoring with less than two minutes burned off the game clock.

In the second quarter, the Hornets doubled their lead as Omarion Hall picked off Kenyon quarterback Park Penrod and returned the interception 51 yards, giving the home team a 14-0 advantage with eight minutes left in the opening half.

Over those first 30 minutes, the Kenyon offense couldn't get much going. The Owls had six completions in 17 attempts, but those plays spanned just 47 yards.Third-down efficiency was also an issue, as the Kenyon team converted one first down in 10 third-down situations. On the ground, Penrod and Drake Lewis accounted for most of Kenyon's offense with Penrod running for 31 yards on five carries and Lewis gaining 28 yards on seven carries.

In the third quarter, however, the Owls made the right adjustments on their first possession. A 28-yard Penrod pass to David Livingston was the key play in a seven-play, 71-yard drive that ended with Lewis getting into the endzone from 13 yards out.

An interception on Kenyon's next possession set the stage for the next Hornets' touchdown. Alex Pepin picked off Penrod at the Kenyon 40 and returned it to the Owls' 13-yard line. It took the Hornets seven plays to reach the endzone, but quarterback Josh Nichols eventually connected with Lucas Hanifan for a seven-yard scoring strike that increased the Hornets' lead to 21-7.

In the fourth quarter, Kalamazoo forced and recovered a Kenyon fumble, but could not convert that turnover into any points. With 5:38 left in the game, the Hornets did produce seven more points off another Kenyon miscue, as Adam Stapleton came up with an interception return of seven yards to put a lid on all scoring.

Penrod ended up 13-of-34 for 130 yards in the air, to go along with 35 yards on the ground. Lewis led the team in rushing, churning out 55 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries. On the receiving end, Brendan Commerford had four catches for 34 yards, while Livingston logged three catches for 51 yards.

Riley led the Hornets, cranking out 89 rushing yards and touchdown on 15 totes. In the air, Nichols finished the game 14-of-29 for 115 yards and the one touchdown toss to Hanifan, who wound up with a team-leading five receptions and 40 yards.

Defensively, Dominic Simpson made a team-best nine tackles for Kenyon, while Andy Melian contributed seven tackles, including two tackles-for-losses and one quarterback sack.

Kenyon slipped to 1-1 with the loss, while Kalamazoo improved to 2-0.
 
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