By Associated Press
KENT, Ohio (AP) — Braedon Sloan ran for two touchdowns and Vaughn Pemberton added a late clincher as Ball State defeated Kent State 37-35 on Saturday.
The Cardinals (2-4, 1-2 Mid-American Conference) seemed to have the game wrapped up when Jackson Courville kicked his third field goal with just over three minutes to go and again when Pemberton burst through the right side with 1:13 left for a 37-28 lead.
But the Golden Flashes (0-6, 0-2) followed the field goal with a 10-play, 62-yard drive, finished by Tommy Ulatowski’s third touchdown pass, an 18-yarder to Luke Floriea with 1:28 to play.
The Golden Flashes had a successful onside kick negated by an early blocking foul and the Cardinals recovered the next attempt before Pemberton’s long TD run.
Chrishon McCray turned a short pass into a dazzling 57-yard run with 30 seconds left.
Ball State got the ensuing onside kick to clinch it.
Kadin Semonza threw for 215 yards and a touchdown for Ball State, which ended a four-game losing streak. Sloan had 76 yards on the ground and Pemberton 52.
Ulatowski was 17-of-36 passing for a career-high 394 yards with an interception and McCray had eight catches for three scores and a career-best 213 yards and Florie six for 130. Both receivers eclipsed 1,000 yards for their careers.
Two former Hancock County football standouts contributed in the Ball State victory. Tanner Koziol, a Mt. Vernon grad, had eight catches for 43 yards. Charlie Spegal, a New Palestine grad, had four carries for 21 yards.
___
Ball State 37, Kent St. 35
| Ball St. | 10 | 10 | 7 | 10 | — | 37 |
| Kent St. | 0 | 7 | 7 | 21 | — | 35 |
First Quarter
BALL_Sloan 1 run (Courville kick), 12:14.
BALL_FG Courville 34, 5:38.
Second Quarter
KENT_McCray 24 pass from Ulatowski (Hryszko kick), 14:54.
BALL_Sloan 1 run (Courville kick), 6:49.
BALL_FG Courville 35, :42.
Third Quarter
BALL_Magwood 13 pass from Semonza (Courville kick), 9:28.
KENT_K.Thomas 4 run (Hryszko kick), 5:47.
Fourth Quarter
KENT_McCray 63 pass from Ulatowski (Hryszko kick), 6:19.
BALL_FG Courville 38, 3:19.
KENT_Floriea 18 pass from Ulatowski (Hryszko kick), 1:28.
BALL_Pemberton 41 run (Courville kick), 1:13.
KENT_McCray 57 pass from Ulatowski (Hryszko kick), :30.
A_7,322.
___
| BALL | KENT | |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 25 | 20 |
| Total Net Yards | 406 | 461 |
| Rushes-yards | 39-191 | 30-67 |
| Passing | 215 | 394 |
| Punt Returns | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| Kickoff Returns | 2-44 | 7-123 |
| Interceptions Ret. | 1-2 | 0-0 |
| Comp-Att-Int | 21-35-0 | 17-36-1 |
| Sacked-Yards Lost | 1-6 | 7-37 |
| Punts | 4-35.5 | 2-38.5 |
| Fumbles-Lost | 0-0 | 1-0 |
| Penalties-Yards | 7-70 | 7-56 |
| Time of Possession | 33:11 | 26:49 |
___
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING_Ball St., Sloan 22-76, Pemberton 5-52, Pickett 3-30, Spegal 4-21, Kelly 1-7, Semonza 3-6, (Team) 1-(minus 1). Kent St., Thomas 17-67, Kimbrough 1-6, A.Harris 2-4, Ulatowski 10-(minus 10).
PASSING_Ball St., Semonza 21-35-0-215. Kent St., Ulatowski 17-36-1-394.
RECEIVING_Ball St., Koziol 8-43, Pickett 4-46, Gillie 2-61, Robinson 2-25, Sloan 2-21, Magwood 2-14, Ferrell 1-5. Kent St., McCray 8-213, Floriea 6-130, D.Martin 2-42, Muldowney 1-9.
MISSED FIELD GOALS_Kent St., Hryszko 45.
