Mt. Vernon grad Tanner Koziol had nine receptions for 102 yards for Ball State Saturday.
Photo courtesy Ball State Athletics
By Associated Press
MUNCIE, Ind. (AP) — Hayden Wolff threw three touchdown passes, Jaden Nixon scored three times on the ground, and Western Michigan rallied in the second half to defeat Ball State 45-42 on Saturday.
The Broncos (2-3, 1-0 Mid-American Conference) led 21-14 after one quarter but trailed 35-28 in the middle of the third. Western Michigan then scored the next 17 points on a field goal, a 23-yard TD run by Nixon and 2-yard TD pass from Wolff to Anthony Sambucci.
Trailing 45-35 late in the fourth, Ball State (1-4, 0-2) made it a three-point game when Kadin Semonza hit Cam Pickett with a 27-yard touchdown pass. Western Michigan recovered an onside kick then took a knee three times to run out the clock.
Nixon had 124 yards rushing with a long of 57 yards for a touchdown. The Broncos had 197 yards on the ground.
Wolff completed 26 of 29 passes for 264 yards. His touchdowns went 10 yards to Blake Bosma and 43 yards to Malique Dieudonne in addition to the short TD to Sambucci.
Semonza threw for 307 yards on 21 of 35 passing. He threw three TD passes, but was intercepted twice. Tanner Koziol, who starred at Mt. Vernon High School, caught nine passes for 102 yards.
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Western Michigan 45, Ball St. 42
| W. Michigan | 21 | 0 | 10 | 14 | — | 45 |
| Ball St. | 14 | 7 | 14 | 7 | — | 42 |
First Quarter
WMU_Nixon 21 run (Zurak kick), 8:39.
WMU_Bosma 10 pass from Wolff (Zurak kick), 7:43.
BALL_Gillie 97 kickoff return (Courville kick), 7:30.
BALL_Robinson 21 pass from Semonza (Courville kick), 5:02.
WMU_Nixon 57 run (Zurak kick), 4:09.
Second Quarter
BALL_Pickett 4 run (Courville kick), 9:54.
Third Quarter
WMU_Dieudonne 43 pass from Wolff (Zurak kick), 12:13.
BALL_Abney 22 pass from Sloan (Courville kick), 9:50.
BALL_Hughes 2 pass from Semonza (Courville kick), 7:52.
WMU_FG Zurak 39, :21.
Fourth Quarter
WMU_Nixon 23 run (Zurak kick), 13:19.
WMU_Sambucci 1 pass from Wolff (Zurak kick), 7:43.
BALL_Pickett 27 pass from Semonza (Courville kick), 1:47.
A_10,342.
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| WMU | BALL | |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 23 | 24 |
| Total Net Yards | 461 | 397 |
| Rushes-yards | 40-197 | 30-68 |
| Passing | 264 | 329 |
| Punt Returns | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Kickoff Returns | 2-46 | 7-188 |
| Interceptions Ret. | 2-0 | 0-0 |
| Comp-Att-Int | 26-29-0 | 22-36-2 |
| Sacked-Yards Lost | 2-17 | 2-13 |
| Punts | 2-50.0 | 2-40.0 |
| Fumbles-Lost | 2-1 | 2-1 |
| Penalties-Yards | 7-84 | 6-45 |
| Time of Possession | 32:30 | 27:30 |
___
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING_W. Michigan, Nixon 14-124, Ja.Buckley 11-48, Abdus-Salaam 10-45, (Team) 3-(minus 3), Wolff 2-(minus 17). Ball St., Sloan 18-65, Semonza 7-5, Pickett 1-4, Spegal 1-0, (Team) 1-(minus 3), Kelly 2-(minus 3).
PASSING_W. Michigan, Wolff 26-29-0-264. Ball St., Semonza 21-35-2-307, Sloan 1-1-0-22.
RECEIVING_W. Michigan, Sambucci 9-74, Womack 7-68, Bosma 7-54, Dieudonne 2-62, Nixon 1-6. Ball St., Koziol 9-102, Sloan 3-90, Robinson 3-44, Magwood 2-24, Pickett 1-27, Abney 1-22, Patel 1-17, Hughes 1-2, Kelly 1-1.
MISSED FIELD GOALS_None.
