PITTSBURGH, Pa. -Â A 50-yard field goal that bounced off the cross bar and went through the goal post with no time remaining downed the Westminster College football team as the Titans lost, 27-24, to host Carnegie Mellon University in Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) action on Saturday.
A Titan sack on fourth-and-five on Carnegie Mellon's 49 yard-line was nullified with a Westminster 15-yard personal foul penalty which allowed an untimed down with zeros on the clock. The Tartans capitalized with the game-winning kick by freshman Tyler Kohman.
Carnegie Mellon (2-2, 2-2 PAC) got on the board first with a pick-six as junior Nico Comsa returned an interception 24 yards for a touchdown. After an extra point kick from Kohman, the Tartans led, 7-0, with 10:47 on the clock in the first quarter.
Westminster (0-5, 0-3 PAC) scored its first points with a minute remaining in the first half when sophomore Justin Dahl (Cochranton, PA / Maplewood) connected on a 25-yard field goal.
The Titans took their first lead of the game on their first drive of the third quarter when freshman Paul Columbo (Boca Raton, FL / West Boca Raton Community) found junior Taran Sifontes-Lavine (Pittsburgh, PA / Chartiers Valley) for a 51-yard touchdown catch. Westminster led, 9-7, after a missed extra point. On the following kickoff, Titan senior Jared Heck (Pittsburgh, PA / North Hills) forced a fumble and junior Justin Shaw (Monaca, PA / Central Valley) recovered at Carnegie Mellon's 35-yard line. The Titans, however, went three-and-out and were forced to punt. The Tartans returned the punt 68 yards and eventually regained the lead with a 20-yard field goal by Kohman with 6:42 remaining in the quarter.
Westminster responded with a 7-play 63-yard drive capped off with a 14-yard touchdown catch by senior John Jones (New Wilmington, PA / Ligonier Valley). Columbo connected with freshman Khurazze Williams (Lakeworth, FL / Santaluces Community) for the two-point conversion, putting Westminster back in front, 17-10, with 3:40 on the clock.
The Tartans quickly knotted the game up on their next drive with a five-yard rushing touchdown by sophomore Zach Cree and an extra point by Kohman to end the third quarter.
On Westminster's second drive of the fourth quarter, the Titans took a 23-17 lead as Columbo tossed his third touchdown on the day after finding freshman Xavier Eubanks (Pompano Beach, FL / Northeast) for a 19-yard score. A point-after-touchdown by Dahl put Westminster ahead 24-17 with 5:24 remaining in regulation.
Carnegie Mellon tied the game with 43 seconds on the clock after a 10-yard pass from junior Andrew Hearon to senior Hayden Cardiff and an extra point by Kohman.
The Titans' ensuing drive was halted at the Tartan's 40-yard line after an interception. The Tartans took advantage of their second chance after the penalty and scored the game-winning field goal.
Columbo finished the game 16-for-29 with 238 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. Williams grabbed a team-high four catches for 60 yards. Sifontes-Lavine caught a team-best 65 yards off two catches. Freshman Dominique McKinley (Greensburg, PA / Greensburg-Salem) led the Titans on the ground with 120 yards on 30 carries for the first 100-yard game of his collegiate career. Senior Rich Ellebie (Farrell, PA / Kennedy Christian) led the Titan defense with 11 tackles, including two for a loss and a sack. Senior Corey Neill (Aliquippa, PA / Central Valley) added 10 tackles, including 2.5 for a loss and a sack.
Westminster out-gained Carnegie Mellon 388 (243 passing/145 rushing) to 203 (108 passing/95 rushing).
The Titans are back on the field next Saturday, Oct. 11, for their Homecoming game versus Thiel. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m.
About Westminster College...
Founded in 1852 and related to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Westminster College is a top-tier liberal arts college and a national leader in graduation rate performance, according to U.S. News Best Colleges guide. Westminster is also honored as one of "The Best 379 Colleges" by The Princeton Review, and is named to the President's Honor Roll for excellence in service learning.
Nearly 1,600 undergraduate and graduate students benefit from individualized attention from dedicated faculty while choosing from 41 majors and nearly 100 organizations on the New Wilmington, Pa., campus. Visit www.westminster.edu/advantage to view "Advantage: Westminster" A Strategic Plan 2010-2020.
