DANVILLE, Ky. -- The Trine University football team traveled to face Centre (Ky.) College for their final non-conference matchup of the season, but were unable to find an offensive rhythm and will return home with a 14-7 loss.
The Thunder defense played tough the entire contest, but the first half in particular saw them succeed in bend but don't break fashion. Both teams would punt through the first four drives of the contest, with both teams combining for a single first down.
Trine looked to be set to strike first in the contest when they pieced together a long 45-yard drive setting up a 47-yard field goal attempt for senior kicker Ryan Hibbets (Monticello, Ind. / Twin Lakes). The long attempt would edge just left and the drive to keep the game scoreless.
Centre responded with a quick strike 69-yard run on the next play to set up a first-and-goal at the one-yard line. The Thunder defense was up to the task however with Kyle Naif (Riverview, Mich. / Riverview) disrupting the first down play in the backfield for a loss of three yards and then stopping the play short of the goal line on third down to force a field goal attempt. The strong defense continued when senior Angle Sanchez (Valparaiso, Ind. / Portage) blocked the attempt, keeping the game scoreless.
The rest of the first half was mostly uneventful with both teams trading punts and with Centre missing one more field goal. The teams would head to halftime still scoreless.
The third quarter belonged to the Colonels, as they put together a pair of 75-yard drives each ending in a touchdown to take a 14-0 lead. The Thunder offensive struggles continued for the quarter as they would punt on two of their drives and turn the ball over on downs on a fourth during the quarter.
The team finally found some footing in their first drive of the fourth quarter. Following a punt from Centre the Thunder started a drive at the 10:17 mark of the final period pinned on their own 20-yard line. Junior Brett Kaylor (Huntington, Ind. / Huntington North) opened the drive with a 16-yard completion to Rodney Johnson (Houston, Texas / Benjamin O Davis, Jr.). The team would move the ball down the field on the strength of Kaylor's arm, aided by a few key penalties from the Centre defense, including a pair of defensive offsides that helped the team convert a 4th-and-ten.
Kaylor finished off the drive with a six-yard pass to junior Kale Lawson (Reynolds, Ind. / Tri-County) for the touchdown. Following Hibbets extra point the team pulled within one score at 14-7.
The team was unable to close the gap further despite the defense coming up with a pair of stops over the final 10 minutes of the contest.
Trine falls to 2-2 following the loss. They will return home to open the 2021 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) season on homecoming by hosting Adrian College. The contest is set to start at 1 p.m.
