The Bison football team fell to the University of Pennsylvania, 34-17, on Sept. 15. This dropped their season record to 0-3 for the year.

On the road, the Quakers jumped to a quick 17-0 lead in the first quarter. In the second quarter, Chanse Riley ’19 recovered a forced fumble at Penn’s 32-yard line. Following the recovery, quarterback Logan Bitikofer ’21, in his first appearance of the season, found Alan Butler ’19 for the first Bison touchdown.

Going into halftime, the score was 27-10 in Penn’s favor. In the third quarter, the Orange and Blue scored their only touchdown of the half two minutes into the frame. The score was set up by cornerback Bryan Marine’s ’19 second interception of the game. He returned it 26 yards to Penn’s 14-yard line. Two plays later, Bitikofer found Andrew Owers ’19 for an 11-yard touchdown pass.

Marine became the first Bison to intercept two passes in a single game since Connor Golden ’18 last did in 2016. He finished the game with 156 all-purpose yards.

Joe Lauro ’19 and Simeon Page ’21 tied for a team-leading eight tackles apiece. In addition, Lauro and Sam Chitty ’20 each registered a team-best 1.5 tackles for a loss. Bitikofer, who entered halfway through the second quarter, finished completing 19 of 35 passes and recording 150 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. The sophomore showed promise and the offense hopes to build on his talent and passion.

“Although the game didn’t turn out the way we wanted it to, we definitely were able to learn a lot from it. Specifically, it’s going to be important for us moving forward to accept any challenge that is thrown at us,” Chitty said. “Whether it’s a turnover from the offense or a bad defensive drive, we are looking to accept and react to this sudden change in a positive way.”

The Orange and Blue will hit the road once again to take on Villanova at 6 p.m. on Sept. 22.