CALIFORNIA (Nov. 29) – The Vulcans held the lead in the fourth quarter before suffering a 23-21 loss in the final minutes to No. 24 Frostburg State at Adamson Stadium in the second round of the NCAA Playoffs on Saturday afternoon.

With the loss, the California (PA) football team finishes the year with a 9-4 overall record while making its second-straight appearance in the NCAA Playoffs. Meanwhile, Frostburg State improves to 11-2 this season and advances to face top-seeded Kutztown in the Super Region One Championship on Saturday, Dec. 6.

The Bobcats controlled possession for over 36 minutes, including nearly 21 minutes in the second half. Frostburg State scored on all three drives in the second half (final drive ending in kneel downs) and twice sustained 15-play drives after opening the half with a one-play touchdown. The Bobcats converted six of their 10 third-down attempts and added a fourth-down conversion.

Junior Kendrick Agenor led all players with 121 rushing yards on 16 attempts, highlighted by 56-yard run late in the second quarter. He finished the year with 975 rushing yards and nine touchdowns while not starting a game until Week 5. Agenor totaled the most rushing yards since Nelson Brown eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark in both 2018 and 2019.

Senior quarterback Roman Purcell posted 196 passing yards on 15-of-28 attempts with two touchdowns and no interceptions. He completed passes to six different players, including himself on a deflected pass.

Junior defensive back Khalil Taylor recorded a game-high 10 tackles (five solo) with 0.5 TFL and one pass break-up. Junior defensive back Keith Charney and sophomore linebacker Malachi Thomas both made eight stops, while sophomore linebacker Tajuan Bandy finished with seven tackles, 0.5 TFL and one forced fumble.

The Vulcans forced and recovered a fumble on the opening kickoff to start their drive at the Frostburg State 30-yard line. Cal advanced 10 yards on seven plays before missing a 37-yard field goal with 12:12 left in the first quarter. Cal recovered a strip sack by sophomore linebacker Sedrick Vessah on the next drive by the Bobcats. The Vulcans took a 7-0 lead on the ensuing drive with a 1-yard touchdown run by redshirt freshman Da'sjon Craggette at the 2:25-mark that capped an 11-play drive.

Cal turned the ball over on downs at the Frostburg State 27-yard line early in the second quarter before the Bobcats tied the score on a 7-yard touchdown run with 4:43 left before halftime. The Vulcans later started a drive at their own 7-yard line with 55 seconds remaining before Agenor scampered 59 yards on the initial play. Purcell then connected with junior wide receiver D'Avay Johnson for a 34-yard touchdown with 30 seconds left before halftime, 14-7.

A lost snap at midfield early in the third quarter led to a 48-yard touchdown pass by Frostburg State to tie the score at 14-14 with 13:56 remaining. The Bobcats later mounted a 15-play, 98-yard drive, featuring a pair of third-down conversions, that was capped by a 3-yard touchdown run to take their first lead of the game, 21-20 (PAT failed) with 2:02 left in the quarter.

Early in the fourth quarter, Johnson caught a five-yard touchdown pass from Purcell on third-and-goal to give the Vulcans a 21-20 lead with 13:08 remaining. Frostburg State then worked nearly nine minutes off the clock while engineering a 15-play drive. The Bobcats completed a 22-yard pass on third-and-10 and later were successful on fourth-and-five with a seven-yard completion. Frostburg State converted a 20-yard field goal at the 4:06-mark after Cal held on third-and-goal at the 3-yard line.

Purcell found sophomore wide receiver Deontae Williams for a 23-yard completion on the initial play of the ensuing drive to move to near midfield. Later, Johnson caught a 20-yard pass on fourth-and seven to move the ball to the 28-yard line of Frostburg State. However, the Bobcats prevented the Vulcans from advancing any further and forced an unsuccessful 45-yard field goal attempt with 1:38 left to play.

Cal reached nine wins for the fourth time over the last decade while recording its 21st-consecutive winning season this fall – the longest active streak in the PSAC. The Vulcans have posted a 41-16 record (.719) over the last five seasons.

NOTES: The Vulcans hold a 5-2 mark in games during the second round of the NCAA Playoffs … Johnson finished the game with 64 receiving yards and two touchdowns on four catches … Cal posted a 5-2 record in games decided by five points or less this season … Williams finished the year with 1,438 all-purpose yards to rank as the most since 2018 … Vessah recorded the eighth-most sacks in single-season school history with 8.5 … The Vulcans played five games against nationally-ranked opponents this fall … Kutztown advanced to the regional championship for the third time in the last five years following a 56-19 victory over Assumption (MA) on Saturday