Box Score KALAMAZOO, Mich. - In their
conference opener, the Trine University football team fought off a
second half comeback by Kalamazoo to take down the Hornets 30-20.
The Thunder improve to 3-2 on the season with the victory.
The Thunder opening the game by scoring on their
first drive, going 81 yards on just seven plays to go up early.
Senior quarterback Ryan Hargraves (Taylor, Mich./Truman) found
sophomore tight end Zach Hess (Eagle, Mich./Grand Ledge) on a
41-yard pass to take the Thunder down inside the red-zone.
From there senior Mike Inge (Grand Rapids, Mich./Forest Hills
Northern) ran the ball on back-to-back plays, scoring from 9 yards
out.
After forcing a three-and-out on the Hornets
first possession, the Thunder would charge 57 yards down the field
as junior Tyler Keck (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Memorial) would drill
his first field goal of the day from 30 yards out.
The Thunder defense would again force Kalamazoo
to punt, allowing the Hornets offense just 7 yards. This time Trine
needed just five plays and 1:43 to score as Hargraves found fellow
senior JaVontae Hence (Elkhart, Ind./Concord) for the 30-yard
touchdown.
Kalamazoo would earn their first, first down of
the game on their opening possession of the second quarter before
Aaron McGuire was able to scramble 50 yards for the score. Trine
would go three-and-out as Kalamazoo followed with another score,
this time on a 24-yard pass. The Hornets would miss field goals
from 41 and 25 yards, the latter coming with just three second left
in the half as Trine would head to the locker room with a 17-14
lead.
The Hornets came back out in the second half and
scored on their opening possession, scoring from 7 yards out, but
the PAT would be missed. That would be the final time the Hornets
would find the end zone as the Trine defense stepped it up from
there.
Later in the third quarter, Trine would use a
short field, going just 36 yards capped off by a 1-yard run by
Hargraves for the score, as the Thunder regained the lead for
good.
Keck would add two field goals in the fourth
quarter, a career-long from 40 yards followed by a 27-yard field
goal with 6:07 left in the game.
Late in the quarter Kalamazoo attempted to pull
within three, as they went for it on 4th-and-5, but sophomore Ryan
Hogan (Vine Grove, Ky./Meade County) came up with his second sack
of the season to give Trine the ball back on downs. On the Hornets
final possession, Kalamazoo would drive down to the Thunder 10, but
the defense would hold strong as they forced three incomplete
passes to end the game.
Hargraves finished the afternoon with a
season-high 211 passing yards while completing 18-of-24 through the
air. Hence also caught a season-high 11 passes from Hargraves for
137 yards and a touchdown. On the ground, Inge finished just 2
yards shy of the century mark, finishing the day with 98 yards on
25 carries.
The Trine defense came up big late in the game as
freshman Michael Spears (Kendallville, Ind./East Noble) led the
Thunder with 13 tackles, 11 of which were solo stops. Senior Tully
Chapman (Eaton Rapids, Mich./Eaton Rapids) and junior Louis Danesi
(Santa Fe, Texas/Santa Fe) each recorded seven tackles (six solo),
as Danesi made three sacks on the day while Chapman also added
one.
In all, the Thunder defense recorded seven sacks
(all solo) on the day which is second most in school history and
was the most since they also recoding seven as a team against
Kentucky Christian on November 14, 2009. Danesi's three
individual sacks are also tied for second most in school history,
behind Nathan Denton who recorded 3.5 sacks on September 11, 2010
at Bluffton.
Both teams had 14 third-down opportunities, as
Kalamazoo converted on six of them and the Thunder five. The
Hornets finished the afternoon with more offensive yardage,
out-gaining Trine 378-350. The key difference in the game came in
the red-zone as Trine was a perfect 4-for-4 while the Thunder
defense held Kalamazoo to 2-for-5 on opportunities.
Trine will celebrate homecoming with their
toughest test of the season when they host defending conference
champion Albion College on October 6 at 1:00 p.m.