Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Turnovers
Time of Poss.
The Hope College football team pushed unbeaten Albion College to the final seconds before dropping the MIAA opener 21-20 on Saturday at Smith Stadium.
The Flying Dutchmen went for the win after scoring a late touchdown but threw an incomplete pass on the two-point conversion attempt.
Hope outgained the leading offense in NCAA Division III 447 yards to 392 and held the Britons well below their season averages of 57 points and 662 yards.
The Flying Dutchmen recorded 310 yards rushing and surpassed 300 yards for the first time since an Oct. 31, 2009 win at Olivet.
Sophomore running back Chris Leigh of Lake Orion, Michigan (Lake Orion HS), rushed for a career- and game-high 173 yards and one touchdown on 23 carries.
Leigh scored on a 9-yard run with 16 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. Hope drove 70 yards in 14 plays and 4 minutes, 2 seconds to answer Albion's go-ahead touchdown and pull within one point at 21-20.
The Britons pressured senior quarterback Rob Kish of Grosse Pointe, Michigan (Grosse Pointe South HS), on the conversion attempt and his pass fell incomplete out of the end zone. Albion then recovered the onside kick.
Kish also scored late in the first half. He threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to senior Matt Kroll of Grand Haven, Michigan (Grand Haven HS), with four seconds remaining in the second quarter to tie the score at 7-7.
The Flying Dutchmen return to action on Saturday, Oct. 10 with a nonleague game at Rockford, Illinois.