COLUMBUS, Ohio — Marietta College's football season came to a close with a 34-31 Ohio Athletic Conference loss to host Capital University Saturday (Nov. 13) afternoon. [Box Score]

The Pioneers (2-8, 1-8 OAC) overcame a 24-point first half deficit and then again rallied to tie the game at 31-31 with three minutes to play, but the Crusaders (5-5, 5-4 OAC) scored a late field goal and then recovered a fumble in the final seconds to preserve the win.

Capital took a 7-0 advantage on its first possession when Dominc D'Andrea scored on an 11-yard rush. The Crusaders extended their lead to 14-0 when Marty Assman connected with Ryan Gunnarson for a 52-yard touchdown pass with 1:35 to play in the first frame.

Assman and Gunnerson hooked up for another touchdown, this time for 20 yards, midway through the second quarter, and Nick VanMeter added a 26-yard field goal to give Capital a 24-0 lead with 75 second left in the half.

Marietta, however, responded with a five-play, 71-yard drive in just 53 seconds to get on the board for the first time in the game. Senior quarterback #Andrew Keller (Cincinnati/Glen Este)# scored on a 14-yard run to send the squads into the break with Capital ahead 24-7.

The Pioneers kept their momentum building when senior Delè Adedapo (Gahanna, Bexley) opened the second half with an 81-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to pull Marietta back within 10 points, 24-14.

After stopping Capital on fourth down on its first possession of the half, Marietta marched 59 yards in 10 plays to cut the deficit to three points, 24-21, when Keller scored on a six-yard run.

The Pioneers complete their 24-point comeback to tie the game when junior #Kyle Cardwell (Uniontown/Green)# connected on a 37-yard field goal with 10:11 to play in the fourth quarter.

Capital regained the lead 31-24 when Assman found Nick Alexander open on a five-yard touchdown pass with 7:30 remaining in the game.

Marietta bounced back with a nine-play, 80-yard drive to even the score at 31-31. Keller capped the drive with a 37-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver #Chad Walker (Spring Hill, Fla./Central)# with 2:56 left on the fourth-quarter clock.

The Crusaders answered with a seven-play, 59-yard drive and took back the advantage for good when VanMeter kicked a 38-yard yard field goal with 45 second remaining to give his squad a 34-31 lead.

Marietta then worked the ball down to Capital's 31-yard line with 20 seconds to play but a third-down snap sailed over the quarterback's head and the Crusaders recovered the loose ball to seal the 34-21 win.

Capital out gained Marietta 448-371 overall. The Pioneers, who had four turnovers, finished with 117 yards on the ground and 254 through the air. The Crusaders ran for 126 yards and passed for 322 yards.

Senior wide receiver #Cory Kriechbaum (Marietta/Marietta)# caught three passes for 33 yards to finish his career with 151 catches, which tied Antonio Hutton for most all-time at Marietta. He also finished with a single-season record 67 receptions.

Keller finished the day 18-of-28 and threw for 254 yards and a touchdown while running 15 times for 61 yards and two more scores. Walker led all receivers with five receptions for 114 yards, while junior wide out #Jahmaal Jones (Valrico, Fla./Bloomingdale)# had five catches for 69 yards. Sophomore running back #Tevin Dones (Antioch, Calif./Antioch)# added the running attack with 25 carries for 76 yards.

Sophomore linebacker #Kadeem Corbin (Cheltenham, Md./Fredrick Douglas)# and junior linebacker #Dan Starr (Senecaville/Buckeye Trail)# paced the Pioneers with nine total hits, while sophomore #Raheem Caver# had eight on the day.