Box Score The Carthage College football team (1-2, 0-0 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin) opened at home on Saturday, Sept. 28 with a 28-14 loss to Adrian College (3-1) at Art Keller Field in Kenosha, Wis. The Adrian contest also concluded the Red Men's non-conference schedule.

Adrian scored on its first drive, going 75 yards on five plays, with Dae'Von Robinson scoring from the one-yard line at 12:13. The Red Men came right back with nine-play, 71-yard scoring drive that ended with a 17-yard touchdown pass from A.J. Simoncelli to Jamahl Wright at 8:14 that tied the game, 7-7.

Carthage had two other scoring opportunities in the first period. Brett Bukari missed a 46-yard field-goal attempt at 6:03, and the Red Men were turned away on downs at the Adrian one-yard line as the first period transitioned into the second quarter. Midway thru the second period, Carthage blocked an Adrian punt at the Bulldogs eight-yard line. Three plays later, Simoncelli connected with Wright for a one-yard scoring strike, and the Red Men led, 14-7, at 6:51. The momentum shifted, however, early in the third quarter when Simoncelli was intercepted at the Adrian 35-yard line on the first drive of the second half. Two plays later, the Bulldogs scored on a Robinson carry from the seven-yard line to tie the game, 14-14. After a short Carthage punt to the Adrian 36-yard line, the Bulldogs capitalized with a three-play scoring drive that ended with a 28-yard carry by Damon Brown, giving an Adrian the lead, 21-14 at 8:59. The Bulldogs closed out the scoring in the fourth period when Simoncelli was sacked and fumbled at his own 13-yard line. Deontae Bridgeman recovered and ran the ball in for the score and the final, 28-14 margin.

Adrian collected 283 total offensive yards, 171 rushing and 112 passing, while Carthage had 238 total yards, -22 on the ground and 260 in the air. The time-of-possession was just about even, with Adrian having a 30:39 to 29:21 edge. The Bulldogs' Damon Brown ran for 146 yards on 19 carries, while quarterback Aaron Tenney completed 10-of-26 passes for 112 yards. The Red Men's A.J. Simoncelli completed 22-of-37 passes for 260 yards, with Evan Jackson catching five of those for 41 yards. Adrian defensive end Jack Carter had nine tackles (7 solo, 2 assisted), including one sack and five tackles-for-loss, while Carthage cornerback Nick Tognocchi collected a game-high 10 tackles and recovered one fumble.

"You can't turn the ball over," said Carthage coach Mike Yeager. "We had a bunch of turnovers in the second half and put them in short-field situations, and that made it tough on us. We also have to be able to put the ball in from the one-yard line. You have to score in those situations, and we haven't done it two weeks in a row." (courtesy of the Kenosha News)

Carthage opens its CCIW-schedule on Saturday, Oct. 5 by traveling to Chicago to take on North Park University (0-3, 0-0 CCIW) in a 2 p.m. game at the Holmgren Athletic Complex.