WAUKESHA – A trio of second-half turnovers came back to bite the Lakeland University football team in the end as Carroll University rallied in the fourth quarter to defeat the Muskies' 45-26 in both teams' season opener Saturday afternoon at Schneider Stadium.

The Pioneers scored the game's final 21 points, all in the final 15 minutes, and defeated the Muskies for the first time in four years. The two teams were meeting to open their respective seasons for the ninth straight year, and Carroll improved to 6-3 all-time against Lakeland.

The Muskies used big plays in the first half to build a 20-10 lead but otherwise struggled on offense most of the afternoon, and especially in the second half. Lakeland gained just 11 first downs for the whole game and totaled 115 yards after halftime, with 50 of those coming on a drive at the end of the third quarter. The remaining eight drives netted just 65 yards and included an interception and a pair of fumbles, with two of the miscues leading directly to 14 points for the hosts.

Carroll stopped a Muskies drive and wiped out their 20-17 halftime lead late in the third quarter when Cameron Cassaro intercepted a pass by Logan O'Neill (Jr.-Spokane Valley, Wash.) and returned it 75 yards for a touchdown. Lakeland did respond a few minutes later, going 50 yards in 10 plays with Charl'Tez Nunnery (So.-Liberty, Miss.) hitting Mason Prunick (So.-Sheboygan, Wis.) for a six-yard touchdown toss, Prunick's first collegiate touchdown giving the Muskies a 26-24 lead with 11 seconds left in the quarter.

The Pioneers responded quickly, needing just 1 minute 30 seconds to go 57 yards, with a 42-yard run by Preston Bell starting a drive that ended with Colton Bahling throwing a one-yard score to David Meza to put Carroll back ahead 31-26. Lakeland very soon fell into a deeper hole, with a Nunnery fumble on the second play of its next drive giving the hosts the ball back at their own 31, and the Pioneers would score five plays later on J.J. Keel's six-yard run, pushing their lead to 38-26.

The Muskies played from behind the rest of the way and could muster just one first down and a total of 20 yards on their final three drives. Carroll tacked on one more score with 5:20 left when Keels scored from eight yards out for his third TD of the game.

Lakeland held the upper hand early on the strength of two huge plays sandwiched around the team's best sustained drive of the day. The Muskies went on top just 3:03 into the game when on a 3rd-and-7 play from their own 21, O'Neill fired down the left sideline to Jamal Hawkins-Sconiers (Sr.-St. James, Mo.) behind the defense for a 79-yard bomb for a 6-0 lead.

After Carroll responded with a touchdown and extra point to take the lead, Lakeland drove 77 yards in 13 plays to go back ahead. O'Neill found Brice Kensey (So.-New Orleans, La.) for a 17-yard touchdown that also was the receiver's first collegiate touchdown grab, and Nunnery ran in the two-point conversion for a 14-7 lead.

The Pioneers answered with a field goal early in the second quarter, but the Muskies came right back to score again as Larry Rivers (So.-Dearborn Heights, Mich.) returned the ensuing kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown, making it 20-10 with 13:10 still left in the first half. Lakeland would score just six points the rest of the way, though, with the Pioneers outscoring them 35-6 the rest of the way.

O'Neill had a tough day passing, completing 6 of 23 passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns. Kensey caught three passes for 42 yards, while Rivers rushed eight times for 59 yards to lead the ground attack. Michael Moreau (Sr.-Crown Point, Ind.) also added a career-best 51 yards on 11 carries.

Sophomore Shazon Crutcher (Lansing, Mich.) led the defense with 12 tackles (six solo). Jerry Stokes (Jr.-Missouri City, Texas) added 10 tackles, and Sam Bartlett (Jr.-Racine, Wis.) had the team's lone sack.

Carroll outgained Lakeland 388-293 for the game and posted 20 first downs to the Muskies' 11. The Pioneers also did not commit a turnover and held the ball for 37:53, more than 15 minutes more than Lakeland.

The Muskies' non-conference schedule gets no easier when after a week off they host Trine (Ind.) University for their home opener on Sept. 15 at 1 p.m. at John Taylor Memorial Field. Trine is the defending Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association champions and is ranked 20th in the D3football.com preseason top 25 poll.