No. 22 Hendrix suffers first loss

From Hendrix Sports
Cody Usher, Sports Information Director

CONWAY – The 22nd-ranked Hendrix College football team suffered their first loss of the season, falling 24-14 to Berry College at Young-Wise Memorial Stadium Saturday afternoon.

On their second drive of the game, the Warriors (5-1, 3-1 Southern Athletic Association) scored on a 30-yard pass from senior Seth Peters to senior Ethan Hoppe. The Vikings (6-1, 4-1) were limited to a 37-yard field goal by Mitchell Blanchard to make the game 7-3 at the end of the first quarter.

After a three-and-out for Hendrix, Berry started the second quarter with a 22-yard scoring run by quarterback Slade Dale to go up 10-7. The Orange & Black regained the lead with 58 seconds left in the half after a nine-yard TD run from senior running back Dayton Winn. Back-up kicker Obie Brannon kicked a 30-yard field goal as time expired in the second quarter to make the game 14-13 in the Warriors’ favor at the break.

Neither team would score in the third quarter. The Vikings opened the fourth with a nine-play drive but were forced to punt. The Warriors managed to get to the Berry 22 on the ensuing drive, but Steve Crenshaw’s 39-yard field goal was blocked by Matt Farinella. Berry took advantage and drove the ball 69 yards on 13 plays, capped by a Jacob Collins three-yard run. Dale completed a 2-point conversion to Trey Ciresi to give Berry a 21-14 lead with 4:11 remaining.

Hendrix turned the ball over on downs and the Vikings went up by 10 points on Brannon’s 38 yard field goal with 1:56 left. The Warriors went 13 plays down to the Berry 11 before Peters threw an interception in the endzone with 0.9 seconds on the clock.

The Warriors ran 70 plays for 392 yards – 332 through the air and only 60 rushing. The Vikings ran 79 lays for 409 yards – 265 on the ground and 144 passing.

Hendrix Notes
– Peters went 32-of-46 passing for 332 yards and a touchdown.
– Hoppe recorded career-highs of nine catches and 119 yards with the touchdown.
– Junior Nate Hodapp caught eight passes for 53 yards.
– Winn had seven catches for 38 yards and nine carries for 49 yards and a score.
– Senior punter Spencer Smith recorded four punts for an average of 44.5 yards, a new school record.
– Junior safety Machael Kramer led the Warrior defense with a career-high 14 tackles.
– Ben Cunningham, Tyler Clifton, Matt Ramirez and Gray Stanton each had nine tackles.
– Junior linebacker Jake Brantley recorded six tackles, including two for a loss.

Berry Notes
– Dale rushed 18 times for 137 yards and a touchdown and was 18-of-32 for 144 yards passing.
– Ciresi had seven catches for 71 yards.
– Austin Lowe carried the ball 16 times with 87 yards.
– Jonathan Fisher recorded seven tackles.
– Jackson Putnam had six tackles, an interception and two pass breakups.
– Mamadou Soumaho recorded two sacks and another for a loss.

Up Next
Hendrix will play another conference game at home next Saturday against the University of Chicago.