Box Score
Mount freshman quarterback Greg Simpson (Cincinnati, OH/Sycamore) tossed the final of this three touchdowns with just over 1 1/2 minutes to play on Saturday, sealing a Lions' 33-24 win at HCAC-foe Bluffton University. With the win the Mount inproved to 7-2 overall, 6-1 in the HCAC. They will conclude regular season action on Nov. 8 when they host Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology on Senior Day.
Lions' kicker Shane Kelly got the scoring started in the game, giving his team a 3-0 lead when he booted a 20-yard field goal at 3:57 of the first quarter. Bluffton answered that with a 14-yard TD play just before the end of the quarter, but the Lions would record two TDs following that. First, Denzel Norvell (Dayton, OH/Thurgood Marshall) went into the end zone on a two yard run, and then Simpson found wideout Leonard Riston (Cincinnati, OH/Withrow) for a 33-yard scoring throw, as the Mount raced ahead, 17-7 with just over 10 minutes left in the second quarter. The Beavers added a short field goal before halftime, as the Mount entered the locker room with a 17-10 lead.
Simpson and Ronnell Colbert (Louisville, KY/Doss) hooked up for a 48-yard scoring play at 10:03 of the third quarter, before Bluffton took a short drive into the end zone, making it a Mount lead of 24-17. Kelly kicked his second field goal of the game at 2:06 of the third quarter, converting from 35 yards, to boost his team's advantage to 27-17. Just into the fourth quarter, the Beavers would cut the deficit to three points, 27-24, after scoring a TD on a 40-yard pass. Simpson, however, would ice the game down the stretch for the Mount, throwing his third and final TD pass of the day, this time to Riston for 12 yards, giving the Lions the win, their sixth in seven HCAC contests this season.
Simpson finished 14-of-28 passes for 181 yards, three TDs, and one interception, while also rushing for 74 yards. Charles McCall (Miami, FL/Miami Norland) led the Mount rushing attack, which totaled 219 yards, with 90 yards on the ground. Colbert hauled in six passes for 70 yards while Riston added five receptions for 79 yards.
The Lions' defense, which held the Beavers to 51 yards rushing on 34 carries, and intercepted three passes, was paced by Konnor Blevins (Cincinnati, OH/Lakota West) and Brent McCleerey (Mooresville, IN/Monrovia), who each collected seven tackles. Marvin Draper (Columbus, OH/Whetstone), Everett Horne (Cincinnati, OH/North College Hill), and Nolan Miller (Cincinnati, OH/Northwest) contributed interceptions.
