BOCA RATON, Fla. – For the second-straight game WKU battled down to the wire, but the Hilltoppers ultimately came up short Saturday afternoon in Boca Raton, Fla., dropping a 29-23 contest to Florida Atlantic. In a back-and-forth game, WKU held one lead, had the score within two points on two separate occasions and also brought it to a one-possession game with 4:59 left to play, but could not come out on top.

WKU has lost the last two games by a combined total of just nine points and drops to 0-11 overall and 0-7 in league play, ahead of Thursday night’s season finale at home against Arkansas State. Florida Atlantic moves to 4-7 on the year and 4-3 in the conference with the victory.

"We were really close on some plays, but once again we had a string of something here, something there that hurt us,” WKU head coach David Elson said. “We could not capitalize on the momentum we had. Give FAU credit, they did a good job of getting first downs at the end and running out the clock. We have to show a whole bunch of mental toughness and keep coming back and grind one out."

The Owls outgained the Hilltoppers in total yardage, 427-368, but WKU held a 201-161 advantage in rushing yards. Kawaun Jakes was 19-28 for 146 yards and one touchdown through the air on the day, and Bobby Rainey rushed for a career-high 144 yards on 15 carries, an average of 9.6 yards per carry. Rainey’s previous career high was 134 yards, set in the team’s last outing on November 14 at ULM.

"It would feel really good to have a career-high in rushing yards if we had won, but we lost so I'm not really feeling anything right now,” Rainey said. “The chemistry of our offensive line and running backs is getting better. Repetition is the key. However, it is very frustrating to get so close and not get the result that you want."

"Bobby (Rainey) is a heck of a player and hard to bring down,” Elson said. “I am proud of the way he fought and the way a lot of our guys fought."

Three Hilltoppers hauled in four passes each, with Jake Gaebler, Seth Tamme and Marcus Vasquez combining for 111 yards and two touchdowns on 12 catches. Gaebler’s 43 receiving yards on the day move him into sixth place on the WKU career receiving-yards list, passing Porter Williams. He now has 1,858 receiving yards in his career and is just nine yards shy of passing Alan Mullins for fifth place all-time.

Casey Tinius was three-for-three on field goal attempts, including a career-long connection from 47 yards, and added two extra points. He has now made seven field goals in WKU’s last two games.

Florida Atlantic was led by quarterback Jeff Van Camp’s 16-30 passing effort, accounting for 266 yards and three touchdowns. Alfred Morris rushed for 122 yards on 25 carries for the Owls.

Florida Atlantic jumped on the scoreboard first just 3:55 into the opening quarter, with Van Camp completing a 16-yard pass to Lester Jean to cap an eight-play, 65-yard drive. The point-after attempt was blocked, keeping the score 6-0 in favor of the Owls. The Hilltoppers covered 35 yards in six plays following the Florida Atlantic touchdown, but the drive was halted when the Owls recovered a fumble after a completed pass from Jakes to Derrius Brooks.

The Owls capitalized on the turnover, with Ross Gornall kicking a 20-yard field goal after the Florida Atlantic offense chewed up the next 5:27, covering 64 yards in 13 plays. Florida Atlantic held a 9-0 lead after the first 15 minutes.

WKU got on the scoreboard midway through the second quarter, when Gaebler hauled in a 27-yard touchdown pass from Jakes at the end of a seven-play, 63-yard Hilltopper drive. But the Owls answered right back, putting seven more on the scoreboard with a touchdown pass from Van Camp to Jason Harmon and a Gornall extra point.

The Hilltoppers weren’t done for the half, marching down the field and opening up the playbook to find the end zone and cut the Florida Atlantic lead to two points heading into the half. WKU scored with 57 seconds left until halftime when wide receiver Brooks completed a touchdown pass to Tamme, the first career passing and receiving touchdowns for each player, respectively.

WKU received the ball to start the second half and took a 17-16 lead on a 31-yard field goal by Tinius. It was the sophomore’s fifth field goal in the last two WKU games. Florida Atlantic jumped back on top just over four minutes later, scoring a touchdown on a quarterback run to make the score 22-17, which would hold as the game headed into the fourth quarter.

Tinius added a 22-yard field goal with 13:03 left to play in the game to cut the Owl lead to 22-20, the second time WKU brought the game within two points. But the Owls added the decisive blow, a 47-yard touchdown pass from Van Camp to Jean that brought the score to 29-20. It was the second time Van Camp and Jean hooked up on a pass play for a touchdown in the game.

Tinius hit a 47-yard field goal to make it a one-possession game, 29-23, with 4:59 left to go in the game, but the WKU defense could not stop the Owls, as they held the ball for remainder of the game to preserve the six-point victory.

Florida Atlantic chalked up 27 first downs compared to WKU’s 19, and the Owls had the ball for 2:50 longer than the Hilltoppers. WKU lost two fumbles and had an interception, and the Owls had just one lost fumble. The Hilltoppers were whistled for just four penalties for 34 yards.

Today marked only the second ever meeting between the two programs. Florida Atlantic won in Bowling Green, 24-20, on October 18, 2008, in the only other matchup between the schools.

WKU concludes the 2009 season on Thursday, December 3 with a 6:00 p.m. home contest against Arkansas State. The game will be televised by the Sun Belt Conference Network, marking WKU's sixth televised game this season.