HARTFORD, Conn. – The Trinity College Football team fell to visiting Middlebury College, 20-15, in a New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) game at Jessee/Miller Field Saturday afternoon. The Bantams dips to 4-1 on the season, and 4-1 in conference, while the Panthers rise to 4-1 in the NESCAC and 4-1 overall.

On their opening possession, the Bantams moved the ball 61 yards on 14 plays, eclipsing nearly six minutes on the clock, down to the Panthers 10-yard, but were unable to punch the ball into the endzone, settling for a 30-yard field goal from junior Matthew Jumes (Franklin, Mass.) to grab a 3-0 lead.

Middlebury looked to respond on their ensuing possession, as senior Cole Kennon (Nashville, Tenn.) threw for 45 yards to put the Panthers on the Bantams 23-yard line. Kennon took a shot to the endzone on a third-and-10 snap, but his pass was intercepted by junior Ma-Lyke Davis (Danbury, Conn.) to halt the Middlebury drive.

On Trinity's following drive, they methodical moved the ball 58 yards on 13 plays, taking just over five minutes off the clock. Sophomore Tyler DiNapoli (West Haven, Conn.) rushed for 21 yards to help put the Bantams down to the Panthers 22-yard line, and Trinity extended the lead to 6-0 with another field goal from Jumes.

With 9:40 remaining in the first half, Kennon hit senior Donovan Wood (Mastic, N.Y.) on an 18-yard pass across the middle, capping off a 17-play, 75-yard drive, to give the Panthers their first lead of the contest, 7-6.

The Bantams regained the lead on their final drive of the first half, executing an 11-play, 59-yard drive in the final two minutes. Graduate quarterback Spencer Fetter (Winter Park, Fla.) connected with junior Sean Clapp (Wyckoff, N.J.) on a pair of passes for 46 yards to set up another field goal from Jumes, who split the uprights from 44 yards out to put Trinity up 9-7 at the half.

The Trinity defense stepped up again on the Panthers first possession of the second half, as a pressure from first-year Luke Ventura (Port Washington, N.Y.) forced an errant throw from Kennon, which was intercepted by graduate Darren Warren (West Haven, Conn.), giving the Bantams the ball on their own 44-yard line. DiNapoli pounded the ball 31 yards on five carries, but the Panthers defense kept the Bantams out of the endzone, and Jumes knocked through his fourth field goal of the day, to make it 12-7 with 9:47 left in the third quarter.

On a Trinity fourth-and-18 possession, the Bantams attempted a fake punt, but the pass from senior kicker Hampton Trout (Belmont, Mass.) was intercepted by Middlebury sophomore Owen Thornton (Merrimack, Mass.) at the Panthers 39-yard line. 11 plays and 61 yards later, Kennon connected with junior Patrick Jamin (Rumson, N.J.) on a 7-yard pass in the endzone to put Middlebury on top, 14-12.

Following a missed field goal from the Panthers, the Bantams rushed for 54 yards on eight plays to set up a 27-yard field goal from Jumes, his fifth of the day, putting Trinity ahead 15-14 with 5:44 to play.

With 2:10 remaining, the Panthers took possession at their 32-yard line, and on the first play of the drive, Kennon delivered a 68-yard touchdown strike to sophomore Mike Ahonen (Wellesley, Mass.) to put the Panthers up 20-15.

At the 1:34 mark, the Bantams had the ball with a chance to score on their final possession. Fetter connected with sophomore Nolan O'Brien (Boston, Mass.) on a 30-yard pass to put Trinity in Middlebury territory, and then found graduate Nicholas Zalanskas (Andover, Mass.) and Clapp to put the Bantams on the 2-yard line with 17 seconds remaining. On third-and-2 with no timeouts, DiNapoli took a handoff, but was stuffed at the goal line by the Panthers defense, preventing the score and securing the 20-15 win for Middlebury.

Offensively, the Bantams totaled 444 total yards, including 291 yards passing, with 23 first downs. Fetter completed 21-of-40 attempts for 291 yards, while DiNapoli rushed for 138 yards on 33 carries. O'Brien logged a career-high 122 yards on six receptions, and Clapp added seven receptions for 107 yards. Jumes set a program record for field goals in a game with five.

Kennon led the Panthers offense with 285 yards passing, connecting on 20-of-35 attempts with three touchdowns and two interceptions. Ahonen erupted for 175 receiving yards on nine catches with a touchdown, while Wood and Jamin added touchdown catches. Linebacker John McCool registered 13 tackles, while Finn Muldoon added 11 tackles.

The Bantams will look to return to the win column when they travel to Williams College for a NESCAC clash next Saturday at 1:30 p.m.