McPherson, Kan. – Two and a half quarters good quarter were not enough for Bulldog football as they gave up 28 points in the game's final 20 minutes to Friends University. The 45-17 defeat to the Falcons moves MC to 1-5 on the year and 1-3 in the KCAC.
It was a very even first quarter as both teams moved the ball up and down the field but had trouble converting on fourth downs deep in their opponent's territory, ending the period in a 3-0 McPherson lead. The second quarter belonged to the Falcons as they scored on a 72-yard pass, a "pick-six," and a 29 yard field goal to take a 17-3 advantage into halftime. MC found the endzone first in the third quarter as Cody Groff hit Kelly Cordova with a 13-yard touchdown pulling the Bulldogs within a score. Two quick TDs by the Falcons gave Friends a lead that McPherson could not reach. FU scored two more times in the fourth and Mac ended the scoring with a 10-yard rumble by fullback Tyler Stone with just four minutes left in the game.
McPherson out-rushed Friends 215-to-210 and ended the contest with 357 yards of total offense; the team netted 22 first downs and went 9-of-20 on third down. Miles Balthazor ran for 104 yards on 19 tries before having to come out in the fourth due to injury. Terrance Jones had a good game back from his injury, rushing for 32 yards on seven carries but he too had to call it a day in the final quarter due to injury. Stone ran in the place of Balthazor and Jones and ended the day with 52 yards on seven attempts. Quarterback Groff ran for 27 total yards while throwing the ball for 125 on 11-of-26 with a pair of interceptions and the touchdown. Cordova led the team in receptions with five for 60 yards. Next on the list was Ste'fon Walker who tallied 45 on his three grabs.
The Falcons totaled 477 total yards of offense with 267 coming through the air, 72 coming on one pass. McPherson was without Trent Forrester in the middle as he's recovering from an injury. Matt Wagner stepped in nicely as he recorded nine total tackles with four being by himself and logged a forced fumble and fumble recovery as well. Ryan Duggan also tabbed nine tackles and led the team in solo stops with five; Ashton Serpas and David Anderson also had five solo tackles apiece.
The Bulldogs will welcome in 2-4 University of Saint Mary next weekend for their Homecoming game on October 18th; kickoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. (CT)
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McPherson College is a Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference member school and a part of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
