BALTIMORE – The Grove City College football team nearly erased a 17-point deficit in the final six minutes Saturday afternoon, but the Wolverines dropped a 17-14 decision to host Johns Hopkins in the second round of the NCAA Division III Championship tournament at Homewood Field.

Grove City (9-2) trailed 17-0 with 5:29 left, but broke through when senior wide receiver Scott Fraser (Butler, Pa./Knoch) caught a 10-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Logan Pfeuffer ( Venetia, Pennsylvania) played ./Peters Township).

Grove City’s defense then forced a punt after three plays. Senior safety Shay Aitken (McDonald, Pa./South Fayette) broke through and blocked the punt, which bounced into the end zone. Sophomore safety Jase Herrick (Greenville, Pa./Greenville) jumped on the loose ball and cut the lead to 17-14 with 3:42 to play.

The Wolverines got the ball back with 2:22 left when Aitken intercepted James Rinello’s third-down pass at Grove City’s 29.

Grove City then gained 61 yards on 14 plays to the Johns Hopkins 10. After three incompletions, the Wolverines’ game-winning field goal attempt hit the left post with nine seconds left to secure the Blue Jays’ lead.

Fraser tied Grove City’s single-game record by catching 19 passes. He finished the game with 231 yards, the second-highest single-game total of his career. Pfeuffer completed 24 of 49 attempts for 273 yards.

Johns Hopkins had a 322-260 advantage in total yardage and a 35:15-24:45 advantage in time of possession. Grove City scored 8 of 18 on third down, while Johns Hopkins shot 3 for 15.

Senior defensive end Bryce Spolnik (McDonald, Pa./South Fayette) recorded 1.5 sacks. Senior nose tackle Kobe Bonanno (New Bethlehem, Pa./Redbank Valley), junior linebacker Ben Bladel (Coraopolis, Pa./Moon) and junior defensive end Jordan Karczewski (Monaca, Pa./Central Valley) all had a half sack.

Junior linebacker Caleb Brubaker (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Mechanicsburg) and sophomore cornerback Dominic DiNinno (Apollo, Pa./Kiski Area) both had eight tackles. Bonanno recorded seven stops.

Johns Hopkins (10-1) will face DePauw in the third round this Saturday. DePauw defeated Maryville (Tenn.) 45-20 on Saturday.

This was Grove City’s second consecutive NCAA playoff appearance. The Wolverines defeated Susquehanna 21-20 in the first round last year before falling to national champion Cortland State in the second round by a 25-24 decision.

The college careers of three Redbank Valley graduates, Bonanno, Trenten Rupp and Dalton Bish, came to an end. Rupp also saw action against Johns Hopkins. Bish and Redbank Valley freshman Mason Clouse did not play.

In other college athlete news:

– While their Presidents Athletic Conference rivals Grove City lost and Carnegie Mellon won (24-15 over Center), Washington & Jefferson also lost in the second round of the NCAA Division III football playoffs. The Presidents fell 38-22 at Randolph-Macon. Redbank Valley graduate Kolby Barrett, a Presidents junior offensive lineman, was on the roster.

– The California (Pa.) Lady Vulcans basketball team fell to 4-4 after Monday’s 65-53 non-conference home loss to Virginia State. Redbank Valley sophomore Alivia Huffman scored six points and grabbed two rebounds in 11 minutes off the bench. California visits West Chester and East Stroudsburg on Friday and Saturday.