WATERVILLE, Maine -- The Bates football team jumped out to a 10-point lead, but five turnovers and 31 unanswered points from the Colby College Mules were the difference in a 38-17 loss for the Bobcats Saturday night in NESCAC action. 

Trailing 7-0 in the first quarter, the Bobcat offense got to work behind the arm of sophomore quarterback Colton Bosselait (Westminster, Mass.), who found senior wide receiver Christian Olivieri (Hull, Mass.) for a 48-yard strike to the Colby 11-yard line. On third and nine from the 10, Bosselait hit Olivieri again for an eight-yard gain. Then senior running back Reza Badiee (La Jolla, Calif.) rushed one yard for a first down, and punched it in on the next play for his first career touchdown. Junior Archie Green Jr. (Upland, Calif.) made the PAT and the game stood tied at seven with 2:10 left in the opening quarter.

The Bates defense forced a three-and-out and the Bobcat offense went back to work, with senior Mohamed Diawara (Philadelphia, Pa.) catching a pass for 16 yards and rushing for 24 yards to the Colby 18. The drive stalled there and Green Jr. drilled a 35-yard field goal, putting Bates up 10-7 with 11:38 left in the second quarter.

The Bobcats continued to impress on defense in the first half when junior Jarrin Sato (Honolulu, Hawaii) picked off Colby quarterback Matt Hersch's pass with a diving grab at the Bates 28. Then on third and two at the Bates 36, Bosselait found Diawara on the far sideline. He shook multiple defenders and sprinted 64 yards for a touchdown. Green Jr. made the extra point and the Bobcats led 17-7 with eight minutes remaining until halftime.

Bates continued to shut down the Mules, forcing another three-and-out. But a Bates fumble gave the ball back to the Mules and permanently changed the momentum of the game. Nine plays and 35 yards later, Hersch punched it in with eight seconds left and Colby trailed the Bobcats 17-14 at the half after the extra point. 

The Bobcats got the ball to start the third quarter but Bosselait's pass was intercepted by Nick Donatio, who returned it to the Bates 18. The Bobcat defense held and Lowell Carr made a 31-yard field goal to tie the game at 17 with 12:11 left in the third quarter.

Bates and Colby traded punts the next few possessions before Hersch found Jack Sawyer on a go route down the far sideline for a 50-yard touchdown, putting the Mules (2-1) ahead for good with 3:14 left in the third quarter.

With the Bobcats now down seven, the teams traded interceptions on the next two drives, with Marc Dougherty picking off Bosselait and senior Mohamed Coulibaly (Philadelphia, Pa.) intercepting a Hersch pass.

Early in the fourth quarter, Colby's Javon Williams picked off a pass, which eventually led to a Colby touchdown. Hersch found Sawyer for 38 yards to the Bates 12 and on the very next play he ran it in for the 31-17 lead with 8:27 left in the game.

The Mules capped off the scoring late in the contest when Keon Smart ran the ball in from 30 yards out, making the final score a bit deceiving considering how close the game was until midway through the fourth quarter.

Bosselait completed 23-37 passes for 264 yards and a touchdown for the Bobcats. He also threw four interceptions. Bates struggled to run the ball, averaging just 2.3 yards per carry. Badiee finished with a team-high 39 yards on the ground and a touchdown. Diawara caught six passes for a game-high 107 yards and a touchdown. Olivieri added five catches for 78 yards. 

Defensively, senior captain Tony Hooks (New Rochelle, N.Y.) led the way for Bate with nine tackles, including six solo stops and a tackle for loss. Coulibaly added eight tackles and an interception. Sophomore Finn Duffey (Scituate, Mass.) recorded a sack for the Bobcats.

Hersch accounted for four total touchdowns, rushing for two scores and completing 15-23 passes for 194 yards and two passing touchdowns. He also threw two interceptions. Smart ran the ball 16 times for 71 yards and a touchdown. Sawyer caught four passes for 104 yards and a score.

Defensively, Julian Young had a big game for Colby with 12 tackles, including six solo stops and a forced fumble. Rome Banaitis sacked Bosselait twice and four different Mules picked off passes.

The Bobcats out-gained Colby in total offense, 324-286. But the turnovers down the stretch proved to be the difference.

Bates (0-3) is back in action next Saturday at Amherst. Kick is set for 1pm.