ASHLAND, Va. – Junior Marcus Mitchell (Chesapeake, Va./Grassfield) registered 10 tackles as the Randolph-Macon football team dropped a 52-17 decision to Johns Hopkins Saturday afternoon in front of 2,772 fans at Day Field in the season opener for both teams.

Mitchell had six solo tackles and shared on a tackle for loss. Eric Long had seven tackles, including five solo stops, for the Yellow Jackets (0-1).

R-MC took the opening kickoff and drove 70 yards in 14 plays in 5:56, culminating in a 27-yard field goal by junior Seth Yurgel (Fredericksburg, Va./Courtland) to give the home team a 3-0 lead. Senior John Byrd (Manassas Park, Va./Manassas Park) carried six times on the drive for 33 yards.

The Blue Jays (1-0) answered quickly, going 65 yards in 10 plays to find the end zone for a 7-3 advantage.

R-MC netted its first touchdown of the season on its next drive, a 28-yard scoring pass from freshman Joseph Vairo (Coral Springs, Fla./Westminster Academy) to freshman Eric Hoy (Clayton, N.C./Clayton) as the Yellow Jackets took a 10-7 lead.

JHU responded with a touchdown on its next possession and would not trail again. The Blue Jays added three touchdowns in the second quarter to lead 35-10 at halftime. JHU added two more scores in the third period to push the lead to 49-10.

Junior Dom Kaopua (Fredericksburg, Va./Chancellor) scored on a four-yard run on the first play of the fourth quarter, capping a 13-play, 70-yard drive, to make it 49-17. JHU added a field goal later in the period to make the final 52-17.

Vairo went 19 of 35 for 215 yards and a touchdown in his first collegiate start. Hoy was his favorite target, pulling in eight catches for 91 yards and a score.

Byrd finished with 59 rushing yards, while Kaopua added 48 on the ground.

Randolph-Macon hits the road for its next contest, travelling to Averett on Saturday, Sept. 12 at 6 p.m.