Box Score SAVANNAH, Ga. -- Savannah State University scored two touchdowns in the final 5 minutes, 29 seconds but Antonio Bostick's two-point conversion pass was tipped and the Tigers lost, 24-22, to Delaware State in both teams' Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference opener Saturday night at T.A. Wright Stadium.
 
A crowd of 2,350 watched as Delaware State's Cory Murphy connected with Milton Williams for a 12-yard gain on third-and-5 with 1:21 to play, and the Hornets ran three plays to end the game. Delaware State improved to 1-3 overall and 1-0 in the MEAC.
SSU fell to 1-4 overall, 0-1 in conference play.
 
After the game, SSU first-year head coach Earnest Wilson III said he told his players that he loves them and appreciates what they are going through. He said he also told them that he wants them to "feel the pain. I want them to feel the hurt so that in the future they make sure that they understand that when they work, work with meaning. Work with care. So that when they have this situation happen again, they know how to get out of this situation."
 
SSU trailed, 24-9, with 5:13 left in the game but Bostick capped a nine-play, 75-yard drive by throwing a 25-yard touchdown pass to Jeremiah Harris with 5:29 remaining. John Barron kicked the extra point, cutting the score to 24-16.
 
SSU's defense forced Delaware State to punt after three plays and the Tigers regained possession at their own 46-yard line with 3:59 left. Bostick threw a 5-yard pass to Cantrell Frazier, ran for a 19-yard gain and threw an incompletion. Bostick then threw a 5-yard pass to DeQuan Daniels, a 5-yard pass to Harris and capped the six-play, 54-yard drive with a 20-yard touchdown pass to Daniels, cutting the score to 24-22 with 1:51 remaining.
 
But Delaware State tipped Bostick's two-point conversion pass attempt, which was intended for Kris Drummond in the end zone, and the Hornets escaped with their first victory this season.
 
"This is a tough game, a tough loss," said Bostick, a senior who started at quarterback but was replaced by redshirt freshman Leon Prunty in the second quarter before returning with less than 2 minutes left in the third quarter. "We were right there on the goal line, right there in the position we wanted to be but we came up short."
 
Bostick finished 16-of-23 passing for 186 yards and two touchdowns. Prunty was 18-of-26 passing for 170 yards. Neither quarterback threw an interception. Prunty fumbled one time.
 
Wilson said he benched Bostick and brought in Prunty early in the second quarter because SSU's offense was stagnant during a scoreless first quarter.
 
"I was missing a couple of reads out there," Bostick said. "I wasn't settled. I took a couple of series off and came back. That fired up my competitiveness and I led my team back. Like I said, we were right there on the goal line and we just came up short. It was so close. And those are the games that hurt the most."
 
Said Wilson, "Bostick did play a good second half when he got the opportunity. He's going to be alright. This is his second game back. He's just got to keep the faith and keep working."
 
SSU took a 3-0 lead on Barron's 28-yard field goal with 7:49 left in the second quarter. The kick capped a 10-play, 48-yard drive that consumed 4:02 off the game clock.
But 18 seconds later, Delaware State's Dae-Hon Cheung ran for a 61-yard touchdown and Mitchell Ward kicked the extra point to give the Hornets a 7-3 lead. It was Delaware State's first lead this season.
 
SSU regained the lead, 9-7, on Prunty's 16-yard touchdown run with 4:34 left before halftime. Roosevelt Isom's two-point conversion run failed.
 
"What happened was they weren't lined up correctly," Wilson said of Delaware State's defense. "They were standing up. And, unfortunately, we snapped the ball and laid it on the ground. We were not in position to run the ball in. … if we wouldn't have dropped the snap, we would have run straight into the back of the end zone."
 
SSU fumbled four times in the game and lost three. The Tigers fumbled three times in the first half and lost two. Delaware State lost both of its fumbles in the first half. The Hornets led, 9-7, at halftime.
 
Delaware State's Ward kicked a 37-yard field goal, giving the Hornets a 10-9 lead with 11:27 left in the third quarter. The Hornets went up 17-9 with 9:26 left when Murphy threw a 47-yard touchdown pass to Malik Golson, and Ward kicked the extra point.
 
Delaware State made it 24-9 with 8:11 left in the fourth quarter when Murphy threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to Aris Scott, and Ward kicked the extra point, capping a nine-play, 83-yard drive that chewed 5:13 off the game clock.
 
Murphy finished 8-of-19 passing for 190 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. Golson made two catches for 84 yards and a touchdown. Cheung ran 13 times for 90 yards and a touchdown to spearhead the Hornets' rushing attack, which gained 134 yards on 37 carries.
 
SSU's Bostick and Prunty combined for 356 yards passing and two touchdowns but the Tigers' running game only gained 68 yards on 29 carries. Cantrell Frazier had eight catches for 108 yards, and Simon Heyward had seven for 72 yards.
 
"I like the way they fought back," Wilson said of SSU. "Things are looking more crisp on offense. They're looking more crisp on defense. They guys are understanding their roles. I think if they start doing it sooner we will be alright."
 
SSU's defense was led by sophomore linebacker Justin Dixon, who made a game-high 11 tackles and recovered a fumble. Freshman linebacker Marquis Smith finished with 10 tackles for the Tigers.
 
"It hurts," Dixon said. "We worked so hard during the week. We lifted weights and practiced, and even though Coach (Wilson) has only been here a short time, we've still been putting in a lot of work. So this hurts a lot. We fought back. There were a lot of good plays. We played good. Just too many mistakes."
 
Delaware State improved to 3-0 in the series. This was the first meeting between the teams since SSU joined the MEAC in 2011. The Hornets beat SSU, 45-22, in 2001 in Savannah and won, 41-9, in 2002 in Dover, Del.
 
SSU will travel to Norfolk, Va., to play Norfolk State at 1 p.m. Saturday.