LYNCHBURG, Virginia – A combined five interceptions between quarterbacks Connor Bazelak and Camden Orth proved to be too much to overcome as the Liberty Flames downed the Bowling Green Falcons 34-24 earlier Saturday afternoon.
Bowling Green went down big in the first half as Liberty jumped out to a 24-0 lead with five minutes to go until halftime.
Liberty’s Billy Lucas scored the first points of the game, punching it in from two yards out on the ground to put the Flames up 7-0.
Later in the first half, quarterback Kaidon Salter connected with Vaughn Blue, just connecting over the outstretched arms of linebacker Darren Anders to go up two scores, before Kobe Singleton picked off Bazelak on the ensuing drive, taking it 36 yards back to the house to go up 21-0.
A Teagen Lenderink field goal were the last of Liberty’s points until the second half, putting his team up by 24.
After a long drive fueled by the ground game, Ta’Ron Keith scored from 14 yards out to cut Liberty’s lead to 17.
Liberty then drove down the field once again, but BG’s defense stood tall and forced Liberty to try for three. Dontrez Brown got a hand on the kick, allowing Trent Simms scoop it and score, taking it 76 yards to the house to bring the score to 24-14 heading into halftime.
Coming out of the locker room, Bazelak led a long drive, getting down to the one-yard line before penalties stalled the drive, forcing the Falcons to settle for a field goal.
Following another Liberty touchdown drive, Bazelak was replaced by Orth, who subsequently took BG to the endzone, connecting with wide receiver Odieu Hiliare on a 32-yard strike to bring the Falcons within a score, 31-24.
The Falcon defense held strong, getting the ball back to the offense on two straight drives, but both drives ended in interceptions.
Liberty tried their hardest to run the clock out following the second of Orth’s picks but were unable to and had to settle for three.
Bazelak finished the game 6-for-21 passing for 71 yards and three interceptions.
Orth threw for 66 yards on 5-for-10 passing, tossing one touchdown to his two interceptions.
Bowling Green comes home for week two, welcoming Eastern Illinois to the Doyt for the team’s home opener on Sept. 9. Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m.
For more information about the team, follow Falcon Media Sports Network (FMSN) on X (@bg_fmsn).
