Box Score In back-to-back weekends, the Dragons had their most exciting games of the year. The first ended in a heartbreaking loss to the Panthers of Clark-Atlanta 20-17. The second weekend brought forth another road trip with a come-from-behind victory. This time the Dragons were on the winning end of an 18-16 game against the Lions of Paine College.

The Lions found the end zone for the first score of the game as the Dragons were forced to punt on 4^th down from the 34 yard line. A blocked punt scooped up on the 8 yard line by the Lions' Jarod Richardson resulted in a dash for the left corner of the end zone and a 7-0 lead after the extra point.

The Lions added to the lead in the second quarter, connecting on two field goals by Wisdom Nzidee (34 yards & 39 yards) for a 13-0 lead. The Dragons responded with their first points of the game as Shannon Tyler zeroed in on the quarterback's pass for the interception and rumbled in for a touchdown. Carlas Moore Jr. connected with the extra point to cut the lead to 13-7. With time running in the first half, Nzidee connected on his third field goal of the game…this time from 46 yards for a 16-7 Lions halftime lead.

The third quarter was a defensive battle for both teams as neither offensive team was able to move the ball. The Dragons capitalized on a mishandled punt in the end zone resulting in a safety for the Dragons and a 16-9 score after three quarters.

The fourth quarter was more of a defensive battle with the Dragons defense coming up big on different drives. On the first Lions drive of the quarter, Dragon Gabriel Mass deflected a would-be-pass that allowed teammate Craig Drummond to collect the interception. The big defensive end knew exactly what to do with the ball in his hands and headed for the end zone. With a group of Dragons leading the way, Drummond returned the interception 52 yards for a Dragons touchdown. A bad snap on the point after attempt kept the Lions leading 16-15.  Carlas Moore Jr. connected with a 25 yard field goal at the 8:16 mark to give the Dragons (1-2 Overall, 1-0 SIAC) the first lead of the game 18-16.   

The Lions put together one last drive, trying to get in position to regain the lead with a possible field goal attempt only to be stopped once again by the Dragons defense. Will Lacy Jr. collected another interception for the Dragons with 2:06 left to play that sent the Dragons to the victory bell.

The Dragons defense combined for seven quarterback sacks and four interceptions while allowing only 220 total yards of offense for the Lions. Chris Rayborn led the Dragons defense with 7.5 tackles and 1 forced fumble. Gabriel Mass had seven tackles, 3 quarterback sacks, 3 quarterback hurries, and 1 deflected pass. Craig Drummond collected 6.5 tackles, 2 sacks, and a 52-yard interception and return for a Touchdown. Brandon Bias added 6.5 tackles and 2 quarterback sacks. Dewayne Brown added a fourth interception on the day for the Dragons.

The Dragons will travel to Tuskegee, Alabama to face the Golden Tigers of Tuskegee University for their next contest on September 27. Kick-off is scheduled for a 1:00 p.m.