Oberlin, Ohio – The Oberlin College football team outlasted the Kenyon College Lords, 28-24, at the Austin. E. Knowlton Athletics Complex on Saturday night.
 
The victory not only marked the first of the season for the Yeomen, but was also their first win on the Bailey Field turf in seven tries.
 
Senior Blake Buckhannon rushed for a career-high 153 yards on 14 attempts to go along with his first touchdown of the season. As a team, Oberlin totaled 229 yards on the ground.
 
Through the air, Lucas Poggiali was 7-of-15 for 91 yards. He also threw one touchdown and one interception.
 
After the Lords took an early 3-0 lead following a blocked punt, the Yeomen offense marched down the field, covering 79 yards in 13 plays. The drive, which took 7:27 off the clock, was capped off by Buckhannon's 7-yard TD run.
 
Oberlin would take a 12-3 lead early in the second quarter when Poggiali ran in from five yards out as he dove for the endzone and just got the nose of the ball across the plane. The 7-play, 98-yard drive featured a 53-yard rip by Buckhannon on 3^rd-and-8 from the Yeomen four as he started right and reversed fields all the way to left, getting a key down field block from Poggiali.
 
Later in the quarter a 49-yard punt return by freshman Fletcher Quigley put the Yeomen in business with a short field as they took over at the Lords' 23-yardline. Sophomore Khalil Rivers did the rest from there, rushing for all 23 yards on the 4-play drive that ended with his 3-yard TD scamper. A two-point conversion pass to Chris Mueller gave the Yeomen a 20-3 lead.
 
The Lords would respond with their first touchdown of the game to get within 10, 20-10, and in the closing moments of the half, a critical Yeomen miscue resulted in a Kenyon safety as a bad snap on an Oberlin punt attempt rolled out of the endzone to make it a 20-12 game at the half.
 
On the first possession of the second half the Yeomen went down the field, going 68 yards just five plays as Poggiali hooked up with Justin Cruz on a 32-yard catch-and-run for his second TD of the year and sixth in his last four appearances.
 
However, it would end up being the lone Oberlin score of the second half.
 
The Lords would fight their way back into the game, scoring two touchdowns on their next two possessions to get within four going into the fourth quarter. It could have been a three-point game, but Szabi Simo's extra point attempt on the second score hit the left upright – a play that would loom large in the fourth quarter.

Early in the period the Lords drove down the Oberlin 28-yardline and elected to go for it on 4^th-and-5 instead of kicking the field goal – a decision that may have been different had Simo's PAT been converted. On the play quarterback Jake Bates was stopped short by Spencer Conley to allow the Yeomen to take over on downs.
 
Following a quick 3-and-out by Oberlin, the Lords would once again get deep into Yeomen territory, working their way down to the 19-yardline. On 4^th-and-8 Tim Kondo broke up a Bates pass, resulting in another loss on downs.
 
The Lords would have one final possession with 2:26 to go, but could not do anything with it as they are now 0-2 on the year.
 
The Yeomen (1-1, 1-0 NCAC) defense was outstanding for much of the evening as they registered nine tackles-for-loss in the win. Justin Bute had a career day with 15 tackles (11 solo), while Bennett Jackson also registered 12 stops.
 
Oberlin is back in action next Saturday when it takes to the road for the first time in 2015 when it travels south to Denison University. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.