MELBOURNE, Fla. --- The Mississippi College football team dropped a heartbreaker to Florida Tech, 31-24, on Saturday night at Panther Stadium.
 
The Choctaws fell to 2-3 with an 0-3 Gulf South Conference mark, while the Panthers improved to 5-1 and 2-1 in league play. 
 

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HOW IT HAPPENED

The Panthers got on the board first with a 42-yard field goal by Trey Schaneville just over five minutes into the contest.
 
The Choctaws answered back with a 20-play, 83-yard drive that took 11:44 of game time and finished with a three-yard touchdown plunge by junior Tiberias Lampkin.
 
After the MC defense made a stop on FIT's next drive, the Choctaws would extend the lead to 14-3 as Lampkin capped off a 10-play, 80-yard drive with a one-yard scoring run.
 
FIT cut into the lead on their final drive of the first half, going 75 yards on five plays to make the score 14-10 on a six-yard run from Austin Evarts.
 
In the second half, the MC offense got things going quickly as Aaron Feazelle rushed up the middle on 4th-and-1 for a nine-yard touchdown to give the Choctaws a 21-10 advantage.
 
On Florida Tech's next possession, they would fumble a shotgun snap on a 3rd-and-1, and the ball would eventually go out of the back of the end zone, which should have resulted in a safety. The officials made illegal batting calls on both teams, which resulted in offsetting penalties and replayed the down.
 
Kalvin Bowman came up big, however, on the next play, stopping a rush up the middle and forcing a punt after what should have been two points for MC.
 
After the Choctaw defense came up with another stop, MC was driving again with a chance to extend the lead even further, but a fumble was returned 74 yards for a score by Dezmond Morgan to cut the lead to 21-17.
 
The Panthers would take their first lead since early in the first quarter on their next possession as Damien McGhee hauled in a 26-yard pass from Trent Chmelik to make the score 24-21 to open the fourth quarter.
 
MC would respond on their next drive as they pushed the ball to the FIT 22-yard line and Drake McCarter nailed a 39-yard field goal to make the score 24-24 with 5:57 to go.
 
The Panthers took their next possession 60 yards on five plays in just 2:12 as Antwuan Haynes ran in from 26 yards out to give the game its final score.
 

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KEY STATS

The Choctaws outgained the Panthers 355-352, including rushing for 247 yards on 58 carries.
 
Lampkin carried the ball 23 times for a career-high 126 yards and two touchdowns, including a long rush of 52 yards to open the second half.
 
Detric Hawthorn, the leading rusher in the Gulf South Conference, rushed for just 35 yards on 10 carries before being knocked out of the game on the final drive of the first half.
 
Quentin Frazier led the Choctaws with five tackles, while Elijah Rogers had an interceptions and Turner Rotenberry tallied a tackle for loss.
 
Haynes carried the ball 15 times for 112 yards and a touchdown for Florida Tech, while Chmelik carried the ball five times for 70 yards.
 
Chmelik was 14-of-21 passing for 184 yards and a touchdown, with Brian Spurgeon catching four passes for 86 yards.
 
Reigning GSC Defensive Player of the Week, J.T. Hassell finished the night with 18 tackles, including 13 solo stops.
 

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GAME NOTES

The touchdown run from Lampkin open the second half was the first points the Choctaws have scored against Florida Tech since 2015 after being shut out in 2016 and 2017.
 

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NEXT UP

The Choctaws will head to Florence, Ala. next weekend to face old Gulf South Conference foe North Alabama. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. at Braly Stadium.
 

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Mississippi College is a private Christian university located in Clinton, Mississippi with an enrollment of over 5,000 students. MC recently finished their transition process back to NCAA Division II and the Gulf South Conference and will be competing for conference and national championships in the 2018-19 academic year.
 
The athletic department sponsors 17 intercollegiate athletic programs: Baseball, Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Football, Golf, Men's and Women's Soccer, Softball, Men's and Women's Tennis, Men's and Women's Indoor Track & Field, Men's and Women's Outdoor Track & Field and Volleyball.
 
For more information on Mississippi College athletics, please contact David Nichols at 601-925-3234 or nichols@mc.edu.