Wide receiver Matt Coursen sprints up field Saturday afternoon at Welch Stadium as the Hornets faced the Central Missouri Mules. The Hornets lost 21-24. Kellen Jenkins/The Bulletin.
Despite shaky special teams play and being plagued with penalties all game, the Hornet football team proved they are a team to be reckoned with in the MIAA during their 24-21 loss to Central Missouri.
A blocked field goal late in the first half, a controversial call during an interception in the third quarter and a missed field goal with 2.2 seconds left in the game, along with numerous offensive penalties, crippled the Hornets throughout the game.
Although the team ended the night with a loss in the record column, the Hornets know that they have improved their game play.
Shaunquez Powell, senior sociology major and defensive back, said he hopes to lead the Hornets’ charge for redemption.
“I’m hungry,” Powel said. “We’re going to take it for what it is. We’re not going to take this loss in vein – we’re going to build from it…that’s all we can do at this point. It’s how you handle adversity, we’re going to go headstrong right into it and keep trying to battle.”
The Hornets had 15 penalties for 103 yards in the game, coming at the most inopportune times. Andre Sloan-El, senior communication major and quarterback, realized the lack of concentration the Hornets showed throughout the game.
“We need to stay disciplined; we kind of lost focus a little bit,” Sloan-El said. “We had some mental busts and some penalties down in the red zone, and that will kill you every time as a team. You just have to stay focused, you have to come together as a team and get everybody calmed down inside of the huddle – just relax out there.”
Matt Coursen, sophomore chemistry major and wide receiver, also noticed a lack of focus from the team.
“We need to be a little bit more mentally in it when we get the ball into the red zone,” Coursen said. “By the time we get down there I think we’re a little tired – we’re going to work on that…there’s a lot of little things that we kind of just messed up on, so hopefully we’ll come back and do better next week.”
After a slow first quarter, the Hornet offense seemed to find their groove in moving the ball down the field. Tallying up 166 yards rushing and 312 yards passing, it seemed as though Central Missouri relied on the Hornets stopping themselves.
Sloan-El led the Hornet rushing attack, gaining 53 yards on 10 carries, while sophomore running back Adrian Abner and junior running back La’Darrian Page each had nine carries for 41 and 35 yards, respectively. Junior running back Kevin Smart carried the ball eight times gaining a total of 32 yards with the lone rushing touchdown for the Hornets on the day. Freshman wide receiver Shjaun Richardson carried the ball once for a four yard gain.
Sloan-El also led the Hornets through the air, completing 19 of his 29 passing attempts for 267 yards and two touchdowns. Sophomore quarterback Zach Rampy completed three of his seven attempts for 45 yards before being sidelined in the second quarter due to injury.
Coursen led the Hornets in receiving, catching four passes for 99 yards, one of them for a 71 yard touchdown that seemed to spark the crowd, as well as the team. Senior wide receiver Danny McEvoy and junior wide receiver Andre Jones each hauled in four receptions for 57, 38 and 36 yards respectively. McEvoy also brought in a touchdown catch from 14 yards out. Page and freshman tight end Adam Schiltz each had two receptions for 45 yards and 25 yards, respectively.
The Hornet defense held stout while containing the Central Missouri offense, only giving up one distinct drive late in the first half.
Senior linebackers Blake Ringwall and Katrel Larkins had six tackles apiece, while Ringwall added a sack. Senior defensive back Travis Lee and Powell each recorded five tackles – Powell also made the lone interception for the Hornet defense.
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