In its 1,000th game in school history, the Washington University football team hoped to pick up its second win of the season against Berry College, which had yet to win a game since being established as a football team last season.

Entering the fourth quarter with a 13-point lead, the Red and Green had a chance to seal the game. But the Bears made two critical mistakes—a blocked field and interception—that the Vikings turned into touchdowns, forcing the game into overtime. Failing to score on their first possession, the Bears needed their defense needed to come up with a stop.

Brian Benton | Student Life

Sophomore running back Austin Smestad carries the ball against North Park University on Sept. 20. The Bears lost to Berry College, a team that had never before won a game, this weekend,.

Instead, Berry completed a 25-yard touchdown pass to end the game and bring the Bears’ season record to 1-4.

“I was disappointed in the loss, but not in the effort of our players. We gave up some big plays, and that is the story of the game,” head coach Larry Kindbom said. “We are growing as a team and finding our identity. If we can continue that, the wins will take care of themselves.”

Despite giving up a 24-yard field goal in the first quarter, the Bears answered quickly as sophomore quarterback J.J. Tomlin led a 69-yard drive that ended in a 30-yard field goal by junior Alex Hallwachs.

At the beginning of the second quarter, Berry quarterback Dale Jackson completed a 54-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run on fourth and goal. The Vikings started their next drive inside their own 15-yard line. On second and 9, Jackson completed a pass, but the Bears swooped in to force a fumble, which was recovered by senior defensive back Joe Quinlan at the Berry 20-yard line.

Half a minute later, Tomlin completed a 17-yard pass to sophomore wide receiver Kevin Hammarlund for a touchdown. This series of important plays caused a major shift in momentum. Defensively, Wash. U. shut down Berry, and in the Bears’ final possession of the half, Tomlin threw another touchdown pass to Hammarlund.

Hammarlund was pleased with his play in the first half.

“I felt pretty good in the first half. As soon as I caught my first pass, I felt like I got into a rhythm. It felt like J.J. [Tomlin] and I were on the same page,” Hammarlund said.

Although the passing game thrived in the first half, head coach Larry Kindbom thought that a running game that tallied 120 yards and a run defense that allowed only 65 for the whole game, after allowing an average of more than 200 early in the season’s first four games, were bright spots for the team.

“We ran the ball more efficiently than the past few [games]. Defensively, we stopped the run, which was an important step for us,” Kindbom said.

In the third quarter, the Bears furthered their lead with a riveting 27-yard touchdown pass to sophomore wide receiver Hank Childs. After a failed extra point attempt, which would later prove to be costly, the Bears maintained a 23-10 lead.

With 13 minutes left in the fourth quarter, Berry began to mount a comeback as Jackson completed a touchdown pass to cut the deficit to six. Struggling to move the ball consistently, the Bears offense sputtered and couldn’t score for the rest of the game.

“We had opportunities; we did not finish series or drives like we had done in the first half,” Kindbom said.

However, the Red and Green looked like they were going to hold onto the lead until Berry started a drive with 2:14 left in the game. Jackson completed a 63-yard touchdown pass to tie the game at 23-23. But the game wasn’t over thanks to Berry also missing an extra point, forcing the game into overtime.

“Of course we are disappointed that we didn’t hold on to the lead in the second half,” senior running back Zach Lonneman said. “There were many opportunities to score points and put the game away. Missed opportunities have been devastating this season.”

Even with the second chance, the Bears were unable to capitalize on offense in overtime, and Berry scored on its first play, handing the Bears a heartbreaking loss.

Following a tough road trip that resulted in two losses, the Bears will return to the friendly confines of Francis Field when they take on Hendrix College on Saturday.