As relentless rain soaked Franklin Field, Friday night’s bright lights turned into the shimmering glare of mourning on Saturday morning as a 17-point lead ended in disaster for the Quakers.
Penn (2-3, 0-2 Ivy) lost their Ivy home opener to the Columbia Lions (4-1, 1-1 Ivy) by a final score of 28-27 despite being up 24-7 in the middle of the second quarter. Penn junior quarterback Karson Siqueiros-Lasky, starting in place of the injured freshman quarterback Miles Teodecki, completed 23 of 41 passes for 374 yards and two touchdowns — but he also threw four interceptions.
“At the end of the day, we need to stop having self-inflicted wounds,” coach Rick Santos said. “Too many turnovers. You know, [we] didn’t get key stops when we needed to. Ultimately, it falls on myself, our staff.”
Wide receivers sophomore Isaac Lee and freshman Mason Page both hauled in over 100 receiving yards in the Quakers’ largest offensive output of the season. Columbia quarterback Chase Goodwin put up 237 yards and three touchdowns on 17 completions. All three touchdown passes went to Lions wide receiver Bryce Coleman, who totaled 90 yards on his six catches.
The Quakers’ defense got off to an electric start, forcing a quick Columbia three-and-out on the Lions’ opening drive. The offense picked up where the defense left off and made quick work of the field. The slick conditions caused Siqueiros-Lasky to bobble a snap, but he recovered and turned it into a 28-yard completion to Page. Penn would put the finishing touches on their opening drive a few plays later with a six-yard touchdown run from sophomore running back Tommy Lafayette. This marked the first time all season the Quakers scored on their opening drive.
The momentum didn’t end there. On the next drive, not even one minute later, junior defensive back Ty Cortes intercepted Goodwin’s pass, setting up a 52-yard field goal from sophomore kicker Mason Walters that gave Penn a 10-point lead. The Lions, however, would respond quickly with a 70-yard touchdown drive immediately after to cut it to 10-7.
Penn special teams stepped up again, with the kickoff being returned 66 yards by senior returner Jayden Drayton. This set up the Quakers for a 19-yard touchdown pass from Siqueiros-Lasky to Page, capping off a one-play touchdown drive. The Quakers’ defense would follow that with a crucial stop on fourth down, as the first quarter ticked to an end.
Penn’s offense would finish the hot streak with a 43-yard completion to Lee and a 20-yard touchdown pass to senior receiver Dante Barone. The Quakers had scored on each of their four possessions, building a 24-7 lead less than a minute into the second quarter.
But the Lions couldn’t be tamed. The Quakers’ defense forced another punt, but Siqueiros-Lasky threw his first interception of the night to Columbia defensive back A.J. George. The Lions would capitalize on the error with a 58-yard touchdown drive. Penn’s attempt at a response came to a halt when Siqueiros-Lasky’s effort to throw the ball out of bounds was picked off by Columbia defensive back Carter McCray, leading to another Columbia touchdown, cutting the lead to 24-21. The Quakers looked like they were driving for points at the end of the half, but Siqueiros-Lasky would throw his third interception of the quarter with the Quakers in field goal range.
“That last interception before half, we had it schematically man for man,” Santos said. “They caught an edge on one of our guys, and Karson got hit.”
The Quakers offense looked set to rebound in the second half, moving the ball to Columbia’s nine-yard line. However, the Lions’ defense would get a crucial stop on their own goal line, forcing Walters to kick a 28-yard field goal. Those three points, which extended the Quakers’ lead to 27-21, were the only points in the third quarter.
Columbia opened the fourth with a drive down to the red zone, but a tipped-ball interception by sophomore defensive lineman Duncan McPherson prevented the Lions from adding more points.
“Yeah, honestly, a lot of it goes to my teammate [junior linebacker Derek] McCrum,” McPherson said. “He tipped the ball, and I just got there and got it.”
However, Penn’s offense couldn’t capitalize, with a completion on third and five being taken back by an offensive pass interference call.
“You know, the last one was not an offensive pass interference. We have the iPads right now, and it was a good run play, and we got open,” Santos said.
On Columbia’s next drive, they would complete two third downs en route to a touchdown, giving the Lions their first lead of the game, 28-27. The teams traded punts, and the Quakers were driving as the game hit the two-minute mark. Then, on the first play on the other side of the warning, a desperate deep ball by Siqueiros-Lasky was picked off. It looked all but over for the Red and Blue as the wind and rain picked up again.
But the Quakers’ defense wasn’t going to go quietly, forcing a Columbia punt and giving the Quakers one last chance with under a minute on the clock.
The drive looked promising, as three quick plays put Penn near midfield with fifteen seconds to go. Siqueiros-Lasky threw over the middle to Page, setting up what would be a 51-yard field goal from Walters. Yet, with nine seconds left on a ticking clock, the Quakers inexplicably chose not to spike the ball, leading to a rushed field goal attempt. The wind blowing against Walters made the kick fall just short, leading to heartbreak for the Quakers as the game crept past midnight.
“It was a miscommunication,” Santos said of the decision to rush the field goal. “We had the ability to spike the ball and not run out and have a bazooka opportunity. We’re going to make sure we correct those things in Sunday’s meeting. Obviously, the right move in that situation is to spike it.”
Heading into their next game, the quarterback situation is still as unclear as it was today.
“Miles [Teodecki] was cleared, but we wanted to make sure that we protected him,” Santos said. “Karson earned the right [to start] after he played that second half last week and found a way to get it done.”
The Quakers’ next game will be under the Friday night lights on Oct. 23, as they look to grab their first conference win against the No. 25 Yale Bulldogs (3-1, 1-1 Ivy).
“I think we just have to respond and reload,” McPherson said. “I don’t think our brand of football was put on tape today. I think we can do better, and I think we’re going to respond.”
