St. Louis, Mo., September 15, 2012 — Washington University in St. Louis totaled 350 yards of offense but was hampered by five turnovers in a in a 20-14 loss to Coe College on Saturday afternoon at Francis Field in St. Louis, Mo.
Washington University drops to 0-3 with the loss, while Coe wins its third-straight game to open the 2012 season.
Trailing 20-7 late in the fourth quarter, junior quarterback Eric Daginella connected with sophomore wide receiverTim Bartholomew for an 11-yard touchdown pass to trim the deficit to six with 56 seconds to go. Washington U.'s onside kick was recovered by Coe to seal the victory in the first-ever meeting between the two teams.
Daginella was 9-of-19 for a career-high 142 yards and a TD while playing most of the second half for Washington U. Starting quarterbackDan Burkett was 14-of-21 for 105 yards but was picked off three times. Coe had the upper had in total offense (383-350) and controlled the clock with a 36:20-23:40 advantage in time of possession.
Washington U.' defense limited Coe to 158 yards in the second half and forced three punts and two turnovers. Coe was held scoreless in a half for the first time since Sept. 10, 2011 (first half) vs. Olivet Nazarene.
Coe's no-huddle offense gave Washington U. fits on its opening drive as QB Jared McNutt completed 4-of-4 passes for 52 yards. Brendan Leiran highlighted the 8-play, 75-yard drive with a seven-yard TD run to make it 7-0 with 11:25 remaining. Washington U.'s defense forced a three-and-out on the ensuing possession, as senior defensive lineman William Small sacked McNutt on third down for a loss of nine yards.
Burkett marched the Bears' down the field on their next possession, tallying 62 yards on eight plays. Sophomore running back Zach Lonneman found the end zone on a six-yard run to tie the score at 7-7 with 0:56 left in the quarter. Washington U. outgained Coe 101-98 in total offense in the opening quarter.
Coe (3-0) regained the lead for good following a pair of touchdown runs by backup quarterback Mark Atwater. He scampered in from four-yards out with 8:12 to play for his first TD, and then found the end zone with 2:43 to play before half to make it 20-7. Coe's defense limited Washington U. to just 49 yards in the second quarter.
The Kohawks outgained Washington U. 225-150 in total offense in the first half, and had an 18:30-11:30 advantage in time of possession in the opening half. Burkett completed 13-of-20 passes for 98 yards and tossed three interceptions in the opening half.
Washington U. picked up 115 yards in the third quarter with Daginella leading the offense. He got the Bears' into Coe territory after a 34-yard pass to Bartholomew, but Demetreus Johnson picked off senior running back Chris Castelluccio on a halfback pass. The interception by Johnson was his second of the day.
Bartholomew had four-catches for a career-high 72 yards and a TD, while senior Drew Sexton added six catches for 56 yards. Castelluccio was the lone threat on the ground for Washington U., rushing for 53 yards on 12 carries.
McNutt finished the day 16-for-27 for 187 yards to lead Coe's offense, while Leiran gained 130 yards on 26 carries and a TD. This marked the third-straight game Washington U. has allowed a 100-yard rusher.
Sophomore defensive back Ryan Bednarhad 10 tackles, two pass break-ups and 1.5 tackles for loss to lead the defensive unit for Washington U. Junior linebacker Peter Lowery added nine tackles (eight solo) and freshman linebacker Matt Goad chipped in with a career-high seven stops.
Washington U. (0-3) completes a two-game homestand against Kenyon College on Saturday, Sept. 22. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Francis Field. A pre-game barbeque will take place prior to kickoff from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.as part of Fall Festival. ChancellorMark S. Wrighton will introduce current student-athletes as well as former letterwinners at halftime celebrating the 2011-12 season.
Bear Notebook: The Bears have not started 0-3 since 1989 … Burkett went over 2,000 passing yards for his career in the loss … Reigning UAA Defensive Athlete of the Week Fade Oluokun did not play due to an injury.