NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. - Despite leading 24-3 at halftime, the Westminster College football team lost, 30-27, to Hiram in both team's season opener under the lights of Harold Burry Stadium on Saturday.

Hiram (1-0) mustered 27 points in the second half, including 20 in the fourth quarter, for a dramatic comeback win. Down 27-22 with 2:32 on the clock, Hiram drove the ball 79 yards in 12 plays, ending with a 14-yard touchdown pass from Robert Partridge to Britton Lewis on fourth-and-seven from Westminster's 14-yard line with 19 seconds on the clock.  

(Highlights courtesy of SR Richard Ellebie, JR Vinny Nerti, JR Taran Sifontes-Lavine, and SO Channing Pifer.)

In the first quarter, the Titans scored on their first drive after a 20-yard field goal off the foot of sophomore Justin Dahl (Cochranton, PA / Maplewood) with 11:13 on the clock. The drive took eight plays and covered 62 yards.

Five minutes later, Hiram tied it, 3-3, after a 24-yard field goal from Greg Klisuric.

After both teams exchanged punts, Westminster took a 9-3 lead when freshman Paul Columbo (Boca Raton, FL / West Boca Raton Community) found classmate Khurazze Williams (Lakeworth, FL / Santaluces Community) for a 32-yard touchdown. The score capped off a 9-play, 88-yard drive, which covered four-and-a-half minutes. An extra point from Dahl put the Titans in front, 10-3, with 35 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

In the second quarter with 11:27 on the clock, Titan freshman Dominique McKinley (Greensburg, PA / Greensburg-Salem) ran in the end zone from four yards out, capping off a 8-play, 60-play drive, which put the Titans ahead 17-3 after an extra point from Dahl. On its ensuing possession, Westminster took a 24-3 lead after freshman Jametrius Bentley (Lake Worth, FL / Park Vista Community) scored from 14 yards out and a Dahl extra point.

The Titans added to their lead in their first possession of the third quarter with another 20-yard field goal from Dahl with 6:49 remaining.

Hiram responded with a score on its next drive with a 31-yard pass from Partridge to Nate Eaton. The Terries cut the Titans' lead to 27-10 after a successful extra point from Klisuric. Hiram capitalized off a Titan interception in the beginning of the fourth quarter as it drove 40 yards in four plays, ending with an 11-yeard touchdown pass from Partridge to Lewis. After an extra point from Klisuric, the Titans' lead was down to 27-16. Hiram made it 27-22 with a score on its next possession, this time from a 1-yard run by Brendon Carr. The Terriers failed on a two-point attempt.

For the game, Bentley rushed for 117 yards on 22 carries (5.2 avg.) and a score. Columbo went 15 of 27 for 206 yards, an interception, and a score. Junior Taran Sifontes-Lavine (Pittsburgh, PA / Chartiers Valley) had a team-high four catches for 42 yards. Freshman Xavier Eubanks (Pompano Beach, FL / Northeast) had a team-high 49 receiving yards, while Williams added two catches for 49 yards and a score.  

Senior Jared Heck (Pittsburgh, PA / North Hills) led the Titan defense with eight tackles, while freshman Todd Jeter (Monroeville, PA / Gateway) had seven. Freshman CJ Armstrong (Lake Worth, FL / Park Vista) added a sack and a team-high two tackles-for-a-loss.

This game marked Titans' coach Scott Benzel's head coaching debut.

For Hiram, Partridge went 23 of 40 for 309 yards and three scores. Lewis had eight catches for a game-high 145 yards and two scores, while Eaton had nine receptions for 83 yards and a score. David Perkins led on the ground with 74 yards off 18 carries. James Romanowski led Hiram's defense with a game-high nine tackles, while Jacob Dengg and Danny Robinson added eight tackles each.

Westminster will host Washington & Jefferson next Saturday, Sept. 13, at 7 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.