PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. - After nearly 60 full minutes of football, Thursday night's season opener between Millersville and Pace came down to one kick. Pat Davis' 42-yard field goal with six seconds remaining sailed just wide left, sealing a 21-20 come-from-behind victory for the visiting Marauders. 

It was Millersville's first season-opening road win since 2009, and it was because of a second-half comeback that saw the Marauders erase a 10-point halftime deficit with 13 unanswered points in the third quarter. Millersville held Pace to just three second-half points including a stop on the Setters' final drive that reached the Millersville 19 before an Isaiah Onuschak sack knocked the Setters back to the 25. That proved significant on ensuing Davis' field goal try. 

"The biggest thing I was proud of was that we came out in the second half and stayed together as a family," said Millersville head coach J.C. Morgan. "We had to gather at halftime because the momentum was getting away from us. At halftime we were able to talk as a program about sticking together and playing as one family. We came out with great energy and seized the momentum. We won the game, and that's great, but I am more proud that we hit adversity and came back together."

Millersville weathered plenty of adversity Thursday. The Marauders overcame three turnovers including one late. After battling back to take a 21-17 lead, quarterback Collin Shank scrambled on a third-and-17 to the doorstep of the end zone, dove toward the goal line but the ball was knocked free. Pace recovered in the end zone and drove for a 44-yard field goal, cutting Millersville's lead to 21-20. 

Shank and the offense responded, however, burning up more than five precious minutes of game clock on the next possession, overcoming a 15-yard penalty with a Shank to Chris Dolan 11-yard completion and Bryan Malone rush for a crucial first down. 

"In that stretch in the fourth we did some good things then shot ourselves in the foot," said Morgan. "Offensively, we fumbled the ball into the end zone but then we got some key first downs and kept the ball moving. Defensively, we gave up some big plays early but time after time we found a way to make a stop."

No stop mattered more than the one on Pace's final drive. The Setters took over on their own 23 with 1:26 left and even picked up a first down on a fourth-and-10 pass play. Quarterback Carlton Aiken hit four consecutive passes including a 22-yarder off of a botched snap, getting Pace to the 19. That's when Onuschak broke through the middle of the Pace line and wrapped up Aiken for a six-yard loss. Time ticked down to six seconds before Aiken clocked the ball. Then came Davis' 42-yard attempt. 

A key for the Marauders was a halftime decision to refocus on the running game. Millersville rushed for 26 yards on 15 carries and Shank was sacked four times in the first half. The Marauders finished with 163 yards on 36 carries and totaled 75 of those yards in the third quarter. K.J. Cartwright had one run in the quarter, and it was a game changer. After catching a 12-yard pass from Shank, Cartwright busted a touchdown run for 59 yards, giving Millersville its first lead (20-17) with 3:54 left in the third. 

"We looked at halftime and felt like we could run the football," said Morgan. "When we were running it for four and five yards, they were physical runs and taking the momentum back. We had some big runs--K.J.'s run--and Christian Smith came out with a couple of hard runs and that set the tone. Coach (Jeff) Tomasetti did a good job with run-pass mix."

Cartwright had just the one carry. Bryan Malone toted the ball 17 times for 66 yards and scored Millersville's first third-quarter touchdown. Smith finished with 43 yards on 11 carries.  

Millersville scored first with 6:19 left in the first on a Shank to Kevon Newerls 29-yard connection. Newerls finished with two catches for 53 yards. Shank went 19-for-27 for 215 yards and hit 10 different receivers. Evan Morrill led the team with four catches. 

Millersville out-gained the Setters 378 to 333 and held Pace to 97 rushing yards and a 3.2 average rush. Onuschak, in his collegiate debut, made a team-high 10 tackles. Redshirt freshman Steve Sweeney made nine stops including two tackles for loss and also broke up three passes. 

NOTES
• Millersville and Pace are now tied in the all-time series with two wins apiece. Millersville won the first meeting in 2016. 
• Nine of the 13 defensive players to make a tackle were making their Millersville debuts. The top three tacklers were redshirt freshmen. 
• Cartwright's 59-yard run was Millersville's longest since Oct. 5, 2017. 
• Of the 10 Marauders to make a catch, eight of them made their first career catch. 

QUOTABLE 
• "The win is a reward for the hard work the players and coaches have put in. We will take time to enjoy the win. We want to enjoy every step of the process good or bad. What we really want to do is enjoy the journey of turning this program around to where we want it to be." - J.C. Morgan