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Hope College

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#BeStrongBeTrue
9.27.25 Football cover photo vs. Alma
Lynne Powe
Pictured, Tyson Mann (9) and Liam Danitz (0)
29
Winner Alma ALM 2-2 , 1-0
26
Hope HPE 3-1 , 0-1
Winner
Alma ALM
2-2 , 1-0
29
Final
26
Hope HPE
3-1 , 0-1
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th OT F
ALM Alma 14 0 9 0 6 29
HPE Hope 0 16 0 7 3 26

Game Recap: Football | | Greg Chandler

No. 15 Football Edged In Overtime after Stunning Finish

The Hope College football team saw its 16-game regular season winning streak snapped Saturday afternoon by Alma College in a stunning ending at Ray and Sue Smith Stadium, 29-26, in overtime in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association opener for both teams.

The 15th-ranked Flying Dutchmen dropped to 3-1 overall after losing their first overtime game since a 42-35 victory over then-Olivet College on Oct. 18, 2014.

The Orange and Blue's last regular-season loss was to visiting Alma, 35-17, on Oct. 14, 2023.

The Flying Dutchmen sent the game to overtime with a 70-yard, 15-play drive late in the fourth quarter. Junior quarterback Alex Thole (Schoolcraft, Michigan/Schoolcraft) ran six yards for the touchdown, hurdling an
Alma defender at the goal line, to cut the Scots' lead to 23-22 with 22 seconds remaining in regulation. Senior kicker Caden Balkon (Byron Center, Michigan/Byron Center) kicked the extra point to tie the game and send it to an extra period.

Alma (2-2) won the opening toss and went on defense first. Hope could not pick up a first down, so Balkon kicked his longest field goal of the season, a 30-yarder, to give the Flying Dutchmen a 26-23 lead.

The Orange and Blue thought they had secured the victory on Alma's second play of overtime. What appeared to be a pass completion and a lateral that was recovered by Hope was ruled an incomplete pass, and the Scots' drive continued.

On fourth down from the Hope 2, Alma quarterback Carter St. John's pass was tipped into the air, and caught by tight end Miles Haggart at the back of the end zone for the winning score.

"I don't know how to describe it," Hope head coach Peter Stuursma said after the game. "I've never seen it in 26 years of being a head coach. We didn't do enough to win the game in overtime. I said to our guys, 'That's not going to define us as who we are or what we're about.' We just didn't have enough. We didn't have enough to make a play when it mattered."

Alma jumped out to a 14-0 first-quarter lead by scoring on its two possessions. Hope had two long drives in the quarter, but one ended on a lost fumble and a second ended with the Scots holding on fourth down inside the Alma 10.

The Flying Dutchmen got on the board early in the second quarter when Thole found junior wide receiver Trevor Griffiths (Stevensville, Michigan/Lakeshore) in the right corner of the end zone for a 22-yard touchdown strike, cutting the Scots' lead to 14-7.

Then, on back-to-back possessions, Hope senior safety Owen Graham (Caledonia, Michigan/Caledonia) intercepted St. John to give the Flying Dutchmen the ball in Alma territory. The first interception led to a 25-yard field goal by Balkon. The second pick set up a 3-yard touchdown pass from Thole to senior H-back Billy Sternberg (Highland, Michigan/Milford) that gave Hope its first lead at 16-14 with just under two minutes left in the first half.

Alma bounced back with a touchdown and field goal in the third quarter to take a 23-16 lead. But the Flying Dutchmen got a key defensive play in the fourth quarter that led to the tying score, as senior defensive back Austin Harvey intercepted a pass at the Hope 30-yard line.

With freshman running back Trey Goike (White Lake, Michigan/Orchard Lake St. Mary's) ripping off a pair of 18-yard runs, Hope moved deep into Alma territory. On fourth-and-7 from the Alma 11, the Scots forced an incomplete pass, but a holding penalty on the defense gave Hope new life, leading to Thole's game-tying touchdown.

"Alex Thole is one of the best quarterbacks in the Midwest, if not the country, at the Division III level. I think we saw that today. He's really good. Our team knows it, he knows it," Stuursma said.

Thole personally accounted for more than 300 yards of total offense for Hope, completing 33-of-44 passes for 267 yards and two touchdowns, and adding 44 rushing yards on 17 attempts. 

Ten different receivers caught passes for the Dutchmen, led by junior wide receiver Jonny Rohen-Blanton (Rockford, Michigan/Rockford) with seven receptions for 51 yards. 

Senior wide receiver Travis Myers (Ada, Michigan/Forest Hills Northern) caught six passes for 61 yards and junior wide receiver Kaden DeHorn (Caledonia, Michigan/Caledonia) hauled in five passes for 63 yards.

Senior defensive lineman Caleb Paarlberg (Alto, Michigan/Caledonia) led Hope defensively with eight tackles, while sophomore defensive lineman Jake Punches (Farwell, Michigan/Clare) made seven stops. Both had 1 1/2 tackles for loss. 

Senior defensive lineman Liam Danitz (West Branch, Michigan/Ogemaw Heights) had two tackles for loss as well as a pressure on the quarterback that led to one of Hope's interceptions.
Hope returns to action Saturday, Oct. 4, at 1 p.m. at Trine University.
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