CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Wide receiver Ryan Flournoy turned in a career-best outing as #15 Southeast Missouri (6-2, 2-0 OVC) dropped their Homecoming contest to Eastern Kentucky (5-3, 1-1 ASUN), 28-23, Saturday afternoon at Houck Field. 
 
Flournoy, a junior from Hazelcrest, Illinois, finished with a personal-best 256 receiving yards on 15 receptions with a touchdown. His performance ranks second all-time in SEMO program history behind Kristian Wilkerson's 263 yards in 2018 at UT Martin (Oct. 27, 2018).
 
Flournoy has now hauled in a touchdown pass in each of the past five games he has played in at SEMO. 
 
Eastern Kentucky scored 22 points in the third quarter to win their fifth game of the season and move to 5-3 on the year.
 
Paxton DeLaurent led a drive in the final minutes of the game down to the EKU 36-yard line trailing by five. A 2nd-and-3 pass resulted in an interception by defensive back Deonta Bembry to end the Redhawks comeback and halt their win streak at six. 
 
DeLaurent finished the contest 27-for-46 with 375 yards through the air, resulting in a touchdown and two interceptions. He also added 45 yards on the ground on five attempts, and a touchdown. 
 
His longest run of the day was 20 yards resulting in a rushing touchdown with 5:17 left in the fourth quarter. 
 
SEMO's defense was stout against the rush, allowing only 61 yards on the ground to the Colonels. 
 
DC Pippin continued his scoring ways with the game's first points. With 12:42 left in the first quarter, Pippin converted a 28-yard field goal to give the Redhawks an early 3-0 lead.
 
Flournoy then recorded the game's first touchdown after the Redhawks defense forced a missed field goal from Patrick Nations (37-yard).
 
Flournoy caught a four-yard pass from DeLaurent to give the Redhawks a 10-0 advantage.
 
SEMO turned in three more points after another 28-yard field goal with 11 seconds left in the first quarter and had a 13-0 lead at the break. 
 
EKU would finally get on the board with a pass from quarterback Parker McKinney. McKinney, who finished 35-for-42 for 398 yards and a touchdown, found wide receiver Jayden Higgins for a 13-yard score. 
 
Higgins led the Colonels in receiving with eight catches for 76 yards and a touchdown.  
 
EKU's succeeding possession resulted in a touchdown. This time an eight-yard scamper by McKinney with 8:35 left on the clock in the third quarter, providing the Colonels a 14-13 edge. 
 
Another Pippin field goal three-minutes later (5:08) regained the lead for the home side. Pippin booted his third 28-yard field goal of the contest to make the score 16-14.
 
Pippin was 3-for-3 on field goals and 2-for-2 on extra points Saturday. 
 
10 unanswered points from EKU gave the Colonels a 25-16 advantage with 8:04 left in the fourth. 
 
EKU tacked on a touchdown as time expired in the third quarter with McKinney's second rushing touchdown of the day (22-16), this one from three yards out. 
 
SEMO trailed for the first time in 16 quarters as the Redhawks previously last saw a deficit against Central Arkansas with 8:33 left to play in the second quarter on Sept. 24.
 
Nations would add a field goal (26 yards) before SEMO looked to make a comeback. 
 
A late score from DeLaurent brought the Redhawks to within two as the SEMO signal caller ran in from 13 yards out to cut the EKU lead to 25-23. 
 
SEMO's defense, led in tackles by linebacker Bryce Norman, held the Colonels to a crucial field goal with 1:23 left in regulation (28-23).
 
Norman, a Jackson, Missouri, native, finished the game with 16 total tackles, and eight solo stops. 

Lawrence Johnson added five total tackles and a tackle for loss in the Redhawk secondary. 
 
The Redhawks took over following the EKU field goal (28-23) at their own 27-yard line. A 12-yard completion from DeLaurent to Flournoy put the Redhawks on the SEMO 39-yard line. 
 
After two-straight incompletions, DeLaurent found his number one target Flournoy on third and 10, completing a 12-yard pass to the EKU 49-yard line. 
 
Geno Hess then registered a 13-yard reception, followed by a seven-yard strike to Pervis Frazier, to put the Redhawks on the EKU 29-yard line. 
 
DeLaurent's final pass was intercepted in the endzone and a kneel-down by McKinney sealed it for the Colonels. 
 
Johnny King had seven catches for 87 yards to add to SEMO's passing attack that finished with 375 yards as a unit. 
 
Hess rushed the ball 19 times for 81 yards. He averaged 4.3 yards per carry, with his longest carry going for 16 yards. 
 
SEMO will next head to Music City next to take on Tennessee State in Nashville, Tennessee, on Saturday, Nov. 5. Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m., CT from Nissan Stadium.