DANVILLE, Ky. – Centre football dropped a 45-22 decision Saturday at Farris Stadium against No. 21 Berry, finishing the regular season against a Southern Athletic Association rival while celebrating Senior Day.
 
The Colonels (5-5, 3-5 SAA) hung tough with the nationally-ranked Vikings (8-1, 6-1 SAA) for much of the afternoon, but the visitors' potent attack proved difficult to contain as they amassed 574 yards of total offense.
 
Prior to kickoff, Centre celebrated the careers of its 24 senior football student-athletes, as well as the senior student coaches and trainers.
 
HIGHLIGHTS
- Berry struck first, cashing in on a handful of big gains while taking a 7-0 lead after a seven-play, 89-yard scoring drive in the later stages of the opening period.
- Forced to punt on its first three possessions, Centre cracked the scoreboard on a 37-yard field goal from Tommy Apostolopoulos to make it 7-3 early in the second quarter.
- The Vikings' Mason Kinsey powered a touchdown drive in response, making it 14-3, and a strip-sack set up a short field for Berry minutes later.
- Gavin Gray hit Kinsey in the end zone again two plays later to increase the lead to 21-3 with just over seven minutes remaining in the half.
- Centre was able to come up with a quick answer, helped in part by a 42-yard completion from John Walton to Christian Billiter on a third and long. Walton hit Breece Hayes soon after for a touchdown.
- The Colonels' special teams unit came up with a takeaway on the ensuing kickoff, as Tanner South recovered a fumble from Berry's Devin Grier, but a late Berry TD gave the visitors a 28-9 halftime advantage.
- Centre forced another takeaway on the first play from scrimmage in the third quarter, which led to an eight-yard touchdown from Walton to Billiter that cut the deficit to 28-16.
- In the fourth, Clark Payne connected with Jordan Gunter for a long 50-yard touchdown, but the Vikings scored twice more to squash a comeback bid.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- The Vikings gashed the Colonels for 371 rushing yards, as Isaiah Dawson (274 yards) and Darius Barnum (102) helped them average almost 10 yards per carry. Conversely, the Colonels struggled to move the ball on the ground, gaining 104 yards on 44 attempts.
- Centre's Walton and Payne racked up 314 yards through the air, and Gunter finished with a career-high 143 yards on eight catches, adding the long TD grab.
- Luc Gendreau was highly active on defense and special teams, leading the team with seven tackles while forcing one fumble and recovering another.
- Mykal Bright blocked a Berry field goal attempt in the third quarter.