Football team falls to Kalamazoo, 35-30

The Olivet College football team let a 24-21 lead slip away, as Kalamazoo College rallied to beat the Comets, 35-30, Saturday afternoon at Angell Field in Kalamazoo.

On its third series of the game, junior Sean Misko (Casco/Richmond) gave Olivet a 6-0 lead with a two-yard touchdown run. Senior Kyle Zabel (Sturgis) nailed the PAT kick to make the score 7-0. The Hornets then scored 21 unanswered points to take a 21-7 lead at halftime.

The Comets took a 24-21 lead by scoring 17 points in the third quarter. Junior Lukas Linn (Harbor Beach) connected with freshman James Williams (Battle Creek/Central) for a 33-yard scoring strike, Zabel made a 32-yard field and junior Pat Clasgens (Livonia/Stevenson) ran 22 yards for a touchdown.

Midway through the fourth quarter, the Hornets grabbed the lead back, 28-24. Kalamazoo then took advantage of an Olivet turnover to put seven more points on the scoreboard for a 35-24 lead.

The Comets put together a nine-play scoring drive, 58-yard drive, capped by a one-yard touchdown run by Misko with 1:34 left in regulation. The two-point conversion try failed, and the score was 35-30. An on-side kickoff attempt was recovered by the Hornets, and they took three knees to end the game.

For the game, Olivet had 385 yards of total offense, including 204 on the ground. Clasgens carried the ball 26 times for 141 yards. Linn threw for 181 yards on 15-of-24 passing. Senior Carl Mulder led the Comet receiving corps with seven catches for 58 yards. Defensively, senior Joe Cleveland (St. Joseph) and junior Hakeem Yakubu (Kalamazoo/Central) each had seven tackles.

The Hornets finished with 369 yards of total offense. Adam Powers rushed 13 times for 32 yards. Brandon Luczak completed 24-of-45 passes for 306 yards with four interceptions and four touchdowns. Jimmy Semelsberger had a game-high eight catches for 108 yards.

The Comets travel to play Trine (Ind.) University next Saturday, Oct. 18. Kickoff from Shive Field in Angola is 1 p.m.