The Beloit College football team had three takeaways in a 49-7 loss at Ripon College Saturday afternoon.
The Buccaneers had their hands full against a Ripon squad that has two of the top seven ball carriers in the Midwest Conference and leads the league in rushing. One of those Red Hawks found the endzone four times Saturday.
The Buccaneer defense still turned over the Red Hawks three times throughout the game. With the Red Hawks in the red zone near the beginning of the second quarter,
Andrei Prikhodko jarred the ball loose from the Ripon ball carrier and
James Miranda recovered the fumble. Later in the quarter,
Caleb Wachal jumped a route and picked off the Ripon quarterback returning it 15-yards to the Bucs' 26.
On the other side of intermission,
Trey Bishop forced another fumble with
Ben Jensen recovering. Later in the fourth, Ripon turned the ball over on downs at the Beloit 17. An 11-play, 84-yard drive was bolstered by a 37-yard pass play. Facing a third and eight,
Diontia Charles dropped back and found
Juan Reyes with a strike that took the Bucs down to the Ripon 23. Following a pair of incompletions,
Ethan Hansen gave Beloit a new set of downs with a 10-yard rush. Charles then connected with
Cyrus Roman for a seven-yard gain followed by a quarterback keeper for another five yards and a first down at the one-yard line. Hansen was tapped for the carry and plunged through the line for the score.
Alonso Casillas' point after was blocked but a penalty gave the Bucs another shot. Casillas' next shot sailed through the uprights to put the finishing touch on the drive.
Hansen posted 76 yards on 29 carries while Charles recorded 80 yards through the air. Reyes caught four passes for 84 yards to lead the Bucs' receiving corps. Defensively,
Jeff Vazquez and Bishop each registered seven tackles with Bishop adding a forced fumble to lead Beloit.
Beloit College will host Macalester College for its final home game of 2019 Saturday, November 9. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Strong Stadium.
