APPLETON, Wis. -- The Lawrence University football team played a strong opening half Saturday, but Cornell College pulled away late to post a 31-21 Midwest Conference victory over the Vikings on Ron Roberts Field at the Banta Bowl.
    The game was tied 14-14 at the half, but Cornell scored a touchdown early in the third quarter and another midway through the fourth quarter to grab control. 
    Lawrence quarterback Aidan Williams was 19-for-29 passing for 181 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Alex Lippert had six catches for 63 yards and a  touchdown for the Vikings, but Cornell did a nice job of taking him away in the second half. Jackson Barbour had six catches for 51 yards and a score for the Vikings.
    Running back Jack Delzer scored his first collegiate touchdown for Lawrence and finishing with 14 carries for a team-high 66 yards.
    Defensive back Kolbe Gelvin piled up 15 tackles for the Vikings, and Jacob Stanley added seven stops. Rookie cornerback Jahlan Paul had a pair of interceptions for Lawrence, and linebacker Jon Pasquarello also had an interceptions and six tackles.
    Cornell quarterback John Smith went 15-for-24 for 188 yards and two scores but also threw three interceptions. Tony Gomez powered Cornell's attack with 20 carries for 139 yards and two touchdowns.
    The Rams (1-1, 1-0 MWC) scored with 5:44 left in the opening quarter to take a 7-0 lead, but the Vikings responded immediately. 
    With Delzer doing the damage on the ground and Lippert catching three passes in the drive, the Vikings moved down the field. Asher Lin and Barbour also caught passes for gains of 16 and 11 yards, respectively, to give the Vikings a first down at the Cornell eight-yard line. Williams hit Lippert for a touchdown on the next play to tie the game at 7-7.
    Cornell pulled ahead 14-7 midway through the second quarter, but Lawrence answered again. Lin made a big third-down catch on the drive, and Lippert had an 11-yard catch for a first down at the Cornell 18. Delzer ran it in from 14 yards out two plays later to tie the game at 14-14.
    Paul picked up his first interception of the game to stop Macalester's final drive of the opening half.
    Cornell scored on its opening drive of the second half to pull out to a 21-14 advantage, and the teams traded interceptions later in the quarter. Cornell then scored on its opening drive of the fourth quarter for a 28-14 edge. 
    Cornell stopped Lawrence's next two drives with an interception and then on downs before the Vikings put together a late scoring drive.
    The big play on the drive was a 28-yard catch by rookie tight end Dane Torrence that gave the Vikings a first down at the Cornell 10. Williams found Barbour on a five-yard scoring pass three plays later to trim the final margin to 31-21.
    Lawrence travels to Monmouth College next Saturday.