CLINTON, Miss. --- In a game that had its start delayed by nearly two hours and ended just before midnight, the Mississippi College football team turned the ball over five times on their way to a 34-21 loss to #10 West Florida on Saturday night.

The Choctaws took their first loss of the season, falling to 2-1 and 0-1 in the Gulf South Conference, while the Argonauts improved to 3-1 and 2-0 in league-play.
 

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TURNING POINT
- Trailing 24-14 at the start of the fourth quarter and nearing field goal range, the Choctaws turned the ball over on back-to-back possessions which led to a game-sealing touchdown drive by the Argonauts with just over six minutes remaining.
 

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HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Argos would take a 10-0 lead into the halftime break after a 20-yard field goal by Austin Williams and an 11-yard touchdown pass from Sam Vaughn to Gage Krull.
- The MC defense would keep them within striking distance, however, as Turner Rotenberry intercepted his second pass of the season, picking off Vaughn at the 9-yard line and returning it back to the 33 of UWF.
- The second half opened with another turnover forced by the Choctaws as Derric Hawthorn ripped the ball away from the Argonauts and Michael Washington Jr. jumped on it on UWF's opening drive.
- The Choctaws turned it into points as Cole Rotenberry caught 46-yard touchdown pass from Detric Hawthorn on the first play of the next drive to make the score 10-7 with 13:40 to go in the game.
- UWF would answer on their next possession as the Choctaws forced a fourth down, but Vaughn found Krull for the second time on a four-yard score to make it 17-7.
- The Argos would extend the lead to 24-7 as Vaughn hit Tate Lehito for a 24-yard score near the end of the third quarter.
- On MC's next time with the ball, Detric Hawthorn was forced out of the pocket and heaved the ball down to Chakel Gates, who turned up field and went 67 yards for a score, cutting the deficit to 24-14 after three quarters.
- The Choctaws appeared poised to cut into the 10-point lead, but a pair of turnovers allowed UWF to extend the advantage to 31-14 in the final period.
- Tiberias Lampkin would score from a yard out with just under three minutes remaining, but the Choctaws could not recover the ensuing onside kick and would fall by a score of 34-21.
 

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KEY STATS
- The Choctaws put up a season-high 437 yards of offense on 69 plays, averaging 6.3 yards per play.
- MC rushed for 263 yards on the night, giving them over 230 rushing yards in all three games this season.
- MC threw for a season-high 174 yards on just six completions, averaging 29.0 yards per completion.
- The Choctaws would also hold the ball for over 34 minutes in the contest, limiting the Argonauts to under 26 minutes.
- Lampkin rushed for a team-high 110 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown.
- Detric Hawthorn carried the ball 18 times for 104 yards, while passing for 174 yards and two scores.
- Colt Freeman caught a couple passes for 31 yards, while Gates had a team-high 67 receiving yards on the long touchdown catch.
- Rotenberry had a team-high eight tackles, including seven solo stops and the interception.
- Calvin Sims Jr. led the team with 2.0 tackles for loss, while Sergio Ayon added a sack.
 

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NEXT UP
- The Choctaws will be at home again when they welcome Valdosta State to Clinton. Kickoff at Robinson-Hale Stadium is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
 

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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.