Penn Can’t Convert Final Field Goal in 28-27 Loss to Columbia

PHILADELPHIA— The University of Pennsylvania Football team fell 28-27 to Columbia at home in the small hours of Saturday, Oct. 17, the game running past midnight after storms in the area postponed the opening kickoff 90 minutes.

The Quakers (2-3, 0-2 Ivy League) attempted a 51-yard kick that fell short as time expired. Instead of spiking the ball and giving Mason Walters, who converted a 53-yard try earlier in the game, time to set up, Penn rushed the kicking team onto the field immediately after a 16-yard completion from backup Karson Siqueiros-Lasky to Mason Page set them up at the Lions’ 36-yard line. After the game, head coach Rick Santos said the rushed attempt resulted from a miscommunication and that the Quakers intended to spike the ball.

Siqueiros-Lasky played an up-and-down game, completing 23 of 41 passes for 374 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions, three of them occurring in Columbia territory. Playing in place of injured starter Miles Teodecki, Siqueiros-Lasky engineered a pair of lightning-fast scoring drives in the first half.

A 66-yard return from Jayden Drayton and an unnecessary roughness penalty set up a one-play, 19-yard touchdown toss to Page; Columbia turned the ball over on downs, and Penn responded with a two-play, 63-yard drive that started with a 43-yard catch-and-run from Isaac Lee and ended with a 20-yard touchdown pass to Dante Barone.

Quakers Unravel

That put Penn in front 24-7. They scored just three points the rest of the way. Siqueiros-Lasky threw three interceptions in the last nine minutes of the second quarter, helping Columbia cut the deficit to three points with a pair of touchdown drives. His third interception kept them off the board before the half.

Both teams missed opportunities in the second half as offense stalled. Penn started the third quarter with a ten-play field goal drive; freshman receiver Simon Cofrancesco appeared to find the end zone on second-and-goal from the one, but the play was ruled short on the field and the ensuing review couldn’t find enough evidence to overturn the call. Quakers’ defensive tackle Duncan McPherson intercepted a pass in his own red zone, keeping the Lions off the board early in the fourth quarter, but Columbia pulled ahead on freshman receiver Bryce Coleman’s third touchdown of the evening.

Siqueiros-Lasky’s fourth interception came in Columbia territory inside the two-minute timeout. While the Quakers forced a three-and-out and got the ball back, they couldn’t convert their final field goal.

Up next, Penn will host Yale at 7 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 23.