DAYTON, Ohio — Mason Hackett turned in a stellar performance by rushing for 218 yards on 22 carries, while Gideon Lampron made significant contributions to the Dayton defense by blocking two field goal attempts, leading to a close 16-14 victory over Davidson on Saturday.

Davidson’s offense made a valiant effort in their final two drives, each lasting more than 12 plays. Unfortunately for them, both drives culminated in missed field goals by kicker Adam Zouagui, with the last attempt coming from 51 yards out and missing with only 22 seconds left on the clock. Zouagui struggled throughout the game, finishing with a record of 0 for 4, three of which were blocked.

In a pivotal moment for Dayton’s special teams, Mac Grant III blocked a punt late in the second quarter. He recovered the ball but was quickly tackled at the 10-yard line. Just three plays later, quarterback Drew VanVleet found Jake Coleman in the end zone for a 3-yard touchdown pass, extending Dayton’s lead to 13-0.

VanVleet, who had an outstanding previous game where he threw for a personal best of 323 yards and five touchdowns against Marist, had a mixed outing this time. He completed 13 of 26 passes for 110 yards, tossing two touchdowns but also throwing two interceptions as Dayton improved their record to 4-1 overall and 2-0 in the conference.

On the other hand, Mason Sheron had a commendable performance for Davidson, racking up 152 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Davidson entered the game boasting the top rushing offense in the FCS, averaging an impressive 368.6 yards per game. They concluded the matchup with a total of 59 carries for 260 rushing yards.