Cardinals Best Ohio at Home to Open MAC Play

MUNCIE, Ind. – Qian Magwood's 43-yard reception at just under the one-minute mark in the fourth quarter awarded Ball State a 18-14 lead against Ohio. Redshirt freshman Donovan Hamilton's grab on a successful two-point conversion sealed the victory for the Cardinals, opening Mid-American Conference play with a win over the defending conference champions, 20-14.

The Cardinals' (2-3, 1-0 MAC) comeback began in the third quarter, limiting the Bobcats (3-3, 1-1 MAC) to a scoreless quarter on just 22 totals yards. Quarterback Kiael Kelly's 13-yard rush into the endzone and a 22-yard field goal from Carson Holmer shrunk the deficit to four after giving up two scores to Ohio in the first half.

Defensive veteran Nathan Voorhis led the suffocating Ball State defense, capturing a career-high 3.5 sacks, along with eight tackles. His season total of 6.5 sacks has already eclipsed Ball State's 2024 sack leader Riley Tolsma who recorded 5.5. The Ball State defense tallied six tackles for loss and three pass breakups on the afternoon. The defensive unit's relentless pressure contributed to big plays down the stretch, including a safety in the fourth which brought the game to 14-12.

While Ohio's offense led the charge in the contest's first two quarters, securing two touchdowns on 262 yards, Ball State's defense limited the Bobcats to just 95 yards in the second half of play.

Magwood recorded catches of 35 and 43 yards on his way to lead Ball State's receiving unit, totaling 92 yards on four grabs. Nine different Ball State targets were found throughout the game.

On the ground, Kelly ran 96 yards on 21 attempts and broke through on multiple occasions to advance the Cardinals down the field.

The Cardinals out-rushed the Bobcats, and nearly out-passed them, while Kelly matched his career-high 17 completions, which he first recorded at Connecticut two weeks ago.

Ball State looks to continue its conference success when it travels to Western Michigan for action Oct. 11 at 3:30 p.m.

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Team Stats

Kiael Kelly

Players Mentioned

Donovan Hamilton

Carson Holmer

Kiael Kelly

Qian Magwood

Riley Tolsma

Nathan Voorhis