San Antonio - The Trinity football team rallied from a nine-point fourth quarter deficit, but was unable to hang on in its 2014 season opener, falling 30-27 against Howard Payne University on Saturday evening.

The loss was the first in this series since the two teams began playing each other again in 2010.  Prior to that, the teams last met in 1950.  

Trinity opened the scoring with a short drive that followed a muffed punt inside the 10 yard line by the Yellow Jackets.  Howard Payne answered with an 88-yard drive to tie the game towards the end of the first quarter, and then picked up another score early in the second after the first Trinity turnover of the night.  It was a theme that plagued the Tigers all night, as the team put the ball on the ground nine times - losing four total fumbles.  

Following the go-ahead score by Howard Payne, Trinity then put together a 14-play drive that put the hometown Tigers up 14-13 midway through the second (HPU had missed the second PAT).  The Yellow Jackets were able to pull ahead heading into halftime, though, converting a 26-yard field goal as time expired to take the 16-14 lead.

After a sluggish - and scoreless - third quarter, both teams came to life in the fourth, combining for 27 total points, and thrilling the crowd with an exciting finish.

Right at the end of the third, Trinity pinned HPU at its own three yard line, and seemed to have earned an important advantage in field position.  Instead, the visitors put together a mammoth 16-play, 97-yard drive that pushed the lead to 23-14 with 10:55 remaining.

The Tigers used just 3:01 on the ensuing drive to punch the ball across the goal line, as Travis Williams picked up his second rushing touchdown of the day.  Matthew Kennemer returned the kickoff 39 yards to set up the short field and the eventual touchdown.  Williams finished with 137 yards rushing and two scores on 25 carries to pace the Tiger ground game. 

The Trinity defense then stepped up to the challenge as well, as Jai Boatman picked off a pass at the 40 yard line to give the Tigers the ball back with 5:25 to play.  Kennemer snagged an 11-yard pass from Mason Blaschke to cap the scoring drive, putting Trinity ahead 27-23 - though the team's two-point attempt fell short.  

Kennemer finished with six receptions for 88 yards and the score, and also had five kickoff returns for 127 yards - finishing with 215 all-purpose yards on the night.  

After the Tigers took the lead, it was the Howard Payne special teams that turned the tide, with Victor Gonzales returning the kickoff 60 yards to put his team just 32 yards from a game-changing touchdown.  Howard Payne got that score in just three plays, taking a 30-27 lead.  

Kennemer had one more return in him, though, going for a 40-yard return to put Trinity's offense into Howard Payne territory with just 2:19 remaining.  The Tigers, however, committed their fourth and final turnover on the first play from scrimmage, and Howard Payne was able to run out the clock from there.

Richard Young completed 36-51 passes for 365 yards and two touchdowns for Howard Payne, connecting with Colby Mica 13 times for 137 receiving yards.  

Mason Blaschke was 15-24 for 208 yards and a pair of scores in his return after missing last year due to injury for the Tigers.  Zachary Allen caught four passes for 78 yards and a touchdown in his first career start.

Defensively, Boatman led all players with 14 tackles overall, as well as the key interception.  Camden Joubert also had 14 stops, while J.P. Sanchez (12) and Connor Yorloff (10) also hit double figures in tackles.  Though Trinity had several quarterback hurries, the team was not able to record any sacks.  

Trinity will be on the road for its next two games, facing off against Willamette (OR) University on September 13 (1:30 PDT), and then taking on Sul Ross (TX) State University at 1:00 p.m. on September 20.  The Tigers return home September 27, hosting Pacific Lutheran (WA) University at 6:00 p.m.