Tabor’s Sean Retting hits Falcons WR Christian Trotter a split-second after the pass arrives. Earlier, Retting forced a fumble.
The Tabor College football team stopped Friends University only once in the first half, an the Falcons won in a walk, 58-6.
That stop came when Tabor forced and recovered a fumble to end the Falcons second drive Saturday.
Sean Retting knocked the ball out of Javis Franklin’s hands, and it was recovered by Ryan Palmer.
Trailing 7-0, the Bluejays marched 25 yards on seven plays—18 of which came on a thunderous run by fullback Seth Ramsey—but ended up stymied on the Friends 19.
In came the field goal unit, but porous blocking combined with a botched snap did not give kicker Marcus Manny a chance to put the Bluejays on the board.
The Falcons took over on their own 27 and quarterback Alex Melugin promptly completed a 73-yard touchdown pass to Abe Kersting for a 14-0 Friends lead with 1:10 left in the first quarter.
That for all intents and purposes ended the game, but the Falcons piled on, taking a 42-0 halftime lead on their way to a 58-6 win.
Tabor's six came with 1:03 left in the third quarter, when Marc Amos hooked up with Spencer Brown on fourth-and-7 at the Friends 36.
Defensive back Nick Brown had a hand in setting up his brother’s score, recovering a fumble by Falcons halfback Brent Craddock.
Tabor drove across midfield, with Amos completing passes to Tristan Burrow and Derek Washington on the way. Washington added a 15-yard burst, and four plays later, Spencer Brown had his touchdown.
Tabor brought in four receivers, setting Brown in the right slot, asking the small but shifty wideout to run a mid-range post pattern.
Brown executed to perfection, reeling in the pass near the 10-yard line and beating the Falcon safeties to the goal line for a 36-yard catch-and-run score.
But there was little other good news for the Bluejays, as running back Demetrius Cox came out of a pile limping on the final play of the second quarter and did not return. Cox injured his ankle at Panhandle State last week.
The Bluejay defense forced two turnovers but allowed 280 yards on 53 rush attempt—5.3 yards per carry on average—and allowed four touchdown passes.
Tabor special teams saw a blocked punt turn into a safety and the Bluejay offense averaged just under 2 yards per play for the game. The Bluejays also committed six penalties for 60 yards.
Teal Stutzman led the defense with 11 tackles, and Washington totaled 44 rushing yards on seven tries. Tabor as a team rushed for 41 yards on 31 attempts.
Standout senior linebacker Kyle Basinger sat out with an ankle injury and is unlikely to return this season.
Coming—The Bluejays (0-4) visit the winless Bethany Swedes on Saturday. Bethel defeated Bethany 13-6 on Saturday.
