MUNCIE, Ind. – A 48-point fourth quarter ultimately went Ball State’s way here Saturday as the home-standing Cardinals capitalized on a pair of second-half turnovers by Missouri State and added a late score of their own to trim the visiting Bears, 42-34.
After the teams went into the intermission tied 7-7 and squared off 14-14 through the third quarter, the scoring from both sides erupted in the final stanza. The Bears scored 20 points in the fourth quarter, including a pair of touchdowns from Jmariyae Robinson and another from Lance Mason, and BSU posted 28 of its own.
A 40-yard TD run by Braedon Sloan with a minute to play pushed Ball State ahead 42-27 and appeared to put the outcome on ice. However, Missouri State rallied behind quarterback Jacob Clark who hit Robinson on a 14-yard scoring strike with 13 seconds left in the game to make it 42-34. The Bears were unable to recover the on-side kick on the ensuing kickoff, and the Cardinals (1-0) took a knee to run out the clock.
Clark finished 19-of-32 for 258 yards and two touchdowns for the Bears (0-2) with Robinson leading all players with seven receptions for 102 yards.
Sloan had 103 yards on 21 carries to lead Ball State, while Kadin Semonza completed 28-of-39 passes for 251 yards.
After the 7-7 halftime deadlock, the Bears regained the lead late in the third quarter, pushing ahead 14-7 on a five-yard TD run by Jacardia Wright. The first-and-goal push capped a nine-play march that consumed just under four minutes and covered 47 yards. The drive included a clutch third-down pass from Clark to Robinson who had four receptions on the drive, while Clark completed 5-for-6 throws on the series.
Kanye Young’s sack on fourth-and-three at the MSU 44 gave the Bears the ball in Cardinal territory to start the go-ahead drive.
However, on Ball State’s next possession, an interception by LeMondre Joe was nullified on a defensive holding penalty that sustained BSU’s drive. Four plays later, Semonza converted a fourth-and-three at the MSU 41 with a touchdown strike to Isaiah Thacker to knot things up again, 14-14, with 2:31 left in the third.
But turnovers cost the Bears on their next two possessions, ultimately deciding the outcome.
After Thacker’s TD, Missouri State coughed up the ensuing kickoff at its own 27, which set the Cardinals up in advantageous field position there. Five plays later, BSU pushed ahead 21-14 on an 11-yard shovel pass from Semonza to Sloan.
MSU seemed to have something brewing on its next drive with a nine-yard rush from Jayden Becks pushing the visitors to their own 38. But Clark’s next pass was tipped and intercepted by Joey Stemler. Stemler seemed to fumble the ball out of bounds before he had possession, but the replay review allowed Ball State to retain possession at the MSU 41. Six plays later, the Cardinals cashed in again on a 17-yard pass to Quian Magwood to make it 28-14 with 11:49 to play.
The Bears were able to cut into that double-figure deficit twice — first at 28-21 and later 35-27 – before a failed on-side kick preceded the 40-yard score from Sloan in the final minute of the game.
Lance Mason’s 57-yard touchdown reception from Clark at the 9:35 mark of the fourth – his third career score – and Robinson’s three-yard rushing touchdown with 1:57 to go were pivotal in keeping Missouri State’s hopes alive in the wild fourth-quarter.
The Bears racked up 320 total yards on the afternoon while Ball State accounted for 424 including 173 on the ground. BSU was also 12-of-19 on third down.
Todric McGee posted a career-high 16 tackles to lead MSU’s defense.
In the first half, the Bears struck first, turning a Ball State mishap into seven points on a 59-yard interception return by PJ Hall 11 minutes into the opening quarter. The pick-six marked Hall’s fourth career interception and halted BSU’s second drive of the afternoon near midfield.
The Missouri State defense fended off a missed 39-yard Cardinals field goal on the first play of the second quarter, but the home club later managed to tie things up on a 15-yard TD run from Semonza on third-and-goal from the 15.
The Bears ran just 15 offensive plays in the opening half, racking up 68 yards, and registered just 6 minutes, 33 seconds of possession time. MSU had five offensive possessions, including a one-play possession at the end of the half, resulting in two three-and-outs and two drives into BSU territory.
Ball State was held to 207 yards on 44 plays in the opening 30 minutes with more than 23 minutes of offensive field time.
Missouri State lifts the lid on its home schedule next Saturday against Lindenwood at Robert W. Plaster Stadium with a 6 p.m. kickoff.
