District College Football Recap for Saturday, November 16

By: Bruce Markey
Sunday, November 17, 2013 | 11:18 AM

It was a day of bad news, good news and then bad news for three area teams with title hopes on the line. Slippery Rock lost in the final minute in the PSAC and now will wait to see if an NCAA bid is availilble.

W & J claimed the 23rd PAC title in school history and a NCAA D-III bid with a win in the PAC Backyard Brawl over Waynesburg while both Robert Morris and Duquense saw their FCS playoff hopes fall with Sacred Heart's victory over the Colonials in Moon Township.

Here are recaps of ALL the games including three here on the Network:

PSAC STATE TITLE GAME:
Bloomsburg 42 – Slippery Rock 38
The 12th ranked Huskies claimed the PSAC title and wrapped a bid in the NCAA Division II playoffs with a come from behind home victory in the championship game. Franklyn Quiteh scored on a 10 yard run with 27 second to play to give Bloomsburg the win. Slippery Rock led by 15 points in the third quarter.

Slippery Rock saw their 8 game winning streak come to an end and also possibly the chance of a NCAA berth, the Rock entered the title game as the #5 ranked team in Super Region 1, Bloomsburg was #3 and West Chester #4, the bids will be announced later Sunday.

Bloomsburg took a 7-0 lead after Quiteh broke an 82 yard run, Joe Parsnik went over on an 8 yard run to score on the next play. SRU answered with a 13 play drive. QB Nigel Barksdale hit Ken Amos with a 31 yard touchdown pass to tie the game.

Slippery Rock had a chance early in the second quarter to take the lead, but could not convert a 4th and 3 at the Bloomsburg 13. The Rock defense got the ball back when Admire Carter picked off Tim Kelly and Teddy Blakeman scored on a 1 yard run to put the Rock up 14-7. The teams traded touchdowns, Shamar Greene scored on a 4 yard touchdown for SRU, Quiteh came back with a 10 yard run for Bloomsburg, but the Huskies missed the extra point as the Rock led 21-13. Slippery Rock had a chance to add on before the half as Barksdale drove the SRU to the 8 yard line but fumbled on the next play and Bloomsburg ran out the first half clock.

Carter set up another Rock score, picking off Kelly a second time. Barksdale hit John Schademan for a 74 yard touchdown and a 28-13 lead. Bloomsburg started the comeback as Kelly hit Connor Gades for a 6 yard score, Joe Parsnik added a two point conversion. The Huskies got the ball back one play later, Donovan Morris recovered a fumble, Parsnik scored on the first play of the fourth quarter to tie the game at 28.

Slippery Rock took the lead back as Drew Scales returned a punt 44 yards for a touchdown with 11:15 remaining. But Bloomsburg didn’t back down, Kelly ripped off a 41 yard run, Quiteh followed with a 40 yard run, he then scored from 2 yards out to knot the game at 35. The teams exchanged punts, SRU took the ball with five minutes to play and drove for a field goal, Mike Wainauskis hit from 24 yards to give the Rock the lead. But there was 2:16 remaining and the Huskies had lots of time.

Kelly ran for 21 yards, Quiteh added a 20 yard run to set up the senior’s touchdown run to give the Huskies the lead again. Bloomsburg was called for a personal foul after the score, the Huskies kicked from the 20 yard line. Julian Harrell took the return to the Bloomsburg 48. Barksdale hit Leroy McClain for a 16 yard gain, the Rock spiked the ball but then was forced to take their second timeout.  Barksdale came up short on a toss with 4 seconds to play, with an incompletion, Slippery Rock took their final to, Barksdale threw short trying to fool the Bloomsburg defense, but Gary Postell picked off the pass and gave the Huskies the PSAC title.

Quiteh carried 27 times for 231 yards, he breaks the PSAC all-time record for career rushing touchdowns and was named the title game MVP.  Kelly ran 6 times for 96 yards and threw for 173 yards. The Huskies are now 10-1 overall and may pick up one of the region’s top 2 seeds and get a bye next week.

Slippery Rock was led by Barksdale, who carried 27 times for 78 yards, the senior QB was 24-41 for 343 yards. John Schademan had 10 catches for 169 yards. The Rock falls to 9-2 overall and will wait the decision of the NCAA committee to see if they will make the D-II playoffs.

W & J 38 – Waynesburg 13
The Presidents are headed to the NCAA D-III playoffs, with the win W & J captures the 23rd PAC title in school history and also the league’s automatic berth into the playoffs.

Dion Wiegand ran for 137 yards and a score, his 25th touchdown of the season. Alex Baroffio added two touchdowns. The only bad news for the Presidents was QB Matt Bliss was lost for the game in the first quarter, he was replaced by Pete Coughlin.

It was the Yellow Jackets who scored first, forcing Bliss to fumble at his own 24 yard line. Carter Hill hit Tim Cooper for a 3 yard touchdown and an early Waynesburg lead. W & J answered with a 13 play drive, capped by a Bliss deflected pass into the hands of Dan Lucas for a 7 yard touchdown, the Presidents missed the extra point. W & J was driving late in the quarter but Bliss was sacked for a 9 yard loss and left the game, Coughlin came on and was sacked on his first snap, forcing a W & J punt.

Coughlin got the offense going in the second, leading a 84 yard drive, capped by a Wiegand 1 yard run, a two pointer gave W & J a 14-7 lead. Waynesburg took the final 6:56 off the clock on a 16 play drive, but could not get into the end zone, Alex Henry kicked his 10th field goal of the season from 24 yards to make it 14-10 Presidents at the half.

Waynesburg got the ball to start the third quarter, but could not get a first down, the game changed on the next play as Baroffio returned the punt 59 yards for a touchdown and a 21-10 lead. The Presidents defense held again, Eric Eberle added a 26 yard field goal. Waynesburg tried to answer but came up short again, Henry kicked another field goal to make it a two possession game.

The W & J defense took over for the rest of the way. B J Monacelli picked off Hill, Baroffio took a wildcat snap and scored on a 1 yard touchdown.  Hill fumbled on the next possession, W & J did not capitalize as Eberle missed a 31 yard field goal attempt but Sam Comly intercepted Hill again. Ryan Ruffing added a 13 yard touchdown to close the scoring.

The Presidents defense forced four turnovers, Hill was intercepted 3 times, he had only thrown 2 interceptions all season. The senior quarterback for the Yellow Jackets was 36-64 for 277 yards. Bernie Thompson had 14 catches for 90 yards.

W & J ends the regular season 8-2 and 7-1 in the PAC. The NCAA D-III field will be announced Sunday night. Waynesburg is 7-3 and 5-3 in conference. The Yellow Jackets could receive a bid to one of the ECAC bowl games, those will also be announced Sunday.

Westminster 30 – Geneva 27
Justin Dahl kicked a 42 yard field goal on the final play, giving Westminster the victory in the 118th meeting between the teams.

The Titans led 17-0 in the first quarter, Dahl opened the scoring with a 19 yard field goal. Dak Britt hit Collin Wallace for a 54 yard touchdown and after recovering a bad Geneva shotgun snap, Britt scored on a 8 yard touchdown to make the New Wilmington crowd very happy.

Geneva scored on the second play of the second quarter, Rocco Colavecchia entered at quarterback and hit Josh Guiser for a 38 yard touchdown. Dahl kicked a 21 yard field goal to put the Titans up 20-7. Colton Booher returned the kickoff 55 yards, setting up Colavecchia for a 2 yard touchdown. After Tim Martin picked off Britt late in the half, Geneva had a chance to score, but Zach Hayward misfired on two attempts and the GT’s turned the ball over on downs.

Westminster pulled away on the second half kickoff, T Sifontes-Lavine returned the kick 94 yards to the house for a 27-14 lead. That scored held up until Colavecchia ran for his 2nd touchdown of the game on a 1 yard run on the opening play of the fourth quarter, Geneva missed the extra point.

Geneva held Westminster on downs at the GT 29 and turned that into a tying drive, Hayward to Guiser for a 32 yard td. Westminster took over at their own 34 with one minute remaining. Britt moved the ball down the field and set up Dahl for the game winner.

Britt ran 26 times for 93 yards, he threw for 271 yards. The Titans finish 4-6 overall and 3-5 in the PAC. Hayward was 25-39 for 208 yards, he also led the GT’s with 13 carries for 70 yards. Geneva finishes 5-5 overall, 5-0 at Reeves Field and 0-5 on the road. The Golden Tornadoes were 4-4 in the PAC.

West Chester 41 – Clarion 14
The Golden Rams keep their playoff hopes alive with the win. West Chester entered the game ranked #17 in D-II and 4th in the region, the top 6 teams advance to the NCAA playoffs.

QB Sean McCartney threw for 323 yards and 3 touchdowns. RB Rondell White ran for 123 yards and 2 scores.

West Chester led 27-0 before Clarion got on the board. Chris Liberto scored on a 8 yard run in the third. Bobby Thomas added a 10 yard run in the fourth, the senior ended with 96 yards on the afternoon. All-American DE Julian Howsare closed out his junior season with 7 tackles and a sack. QB Darrelle Carson struggled, going just 4 of 16. West Chester is 10-1, Clarion ends the season at 4-7.

Sacred Heart 42 – Robert Morris 25
Worst to first for the Pioneers with the win in Moon Township on Saturday afternoon, the victory gives Sacred Heart the NEC title and berth into the FCS playoffs. Sophomore QB R J Noel threw for 3 scores and ran for another as the Pioneers finish the regular season at 10-2.

Noel staked Sacred Heart to a 14-0 second quarter lead on a 70 yard td pass to Robert Dim and a 19 yard pass to Moses Webb. Connor Shennan kicked a 41 yard field goal for the only RMU points of the first half. Noel scored on a 35 yard run in the third, Shennan added his second field goal and Sacred Heart led 21-6 entering the fourth.

40 points were scored in the final quarter. Noel hit Tyler Dube for a 34 yard td on the first play of the quarter. Ryan Thermil scored on a 2 yard run for the Colonials. A J Holderman picked off a Noel pass and returned it 17 yards for a td with 4:44 remaining. Keshaudas Spence scored on a 23 yard run to put Sacred Heart up 35-18. Needing three scores, the Colonials marched quickly down the field, Deontae Howard scored scored on a 5 yard run to make it 35-25. The onside kick attempt was picked up by Gordon Hill, he went 44 yards for a touchdown to put the game away.

Spence carried 25 times for 111 yards. Noel threw for 186 yards and ran for 74 more. Howard led the way for RMU with 80 yards on 12 carries. QB Paul Jones struggled at 13-32 for 175 yards with 2 interceptions. Robert Morris is now 5-5 overall and 3-2 in the NEC.

Duquesne 24 – Central Connecticut State 21
The Dukes clinch their 17th winning season in the last 20 years and a share of the NEC title but miss out on the NCAA playoffs with Sacred Heart’s win over Robert Morris giving the Pioneers the berth. Austin Crimmins kicked three field goals and Dillon Buechel threw for 288 yards and a score to take Duquesne to 6-4 overall.

Nick SanGiacomo opened the scoring with a 61 yard td pass to Scott Benzing for the Blue Devils. Crimmins kicked a 19 yard field goal in the first, Jason Douglas added a 45 yard run in the second and Crimmins hit from 43 out on the final play of the half to put Duquesne up 13-7 at the break.

The Blue Devils took the lead on a SanGiacomo 8 yard pass to Denzell Jones in the third. Buechel hit Gianni Carter for a 66 yard td with 8:37 left in regulation time, the two pointer put Duquesne up 24-14. SanGiacomo hit Nick Bacarella for a 4 yard td with 1:19 left but the Dukes held on for the win.

Devin Rahming had 9 catches for 116 yards, Carter made 5 grabs for 111 yards. SanGiacomo threw for 253 yards to lead the Blue Devils, now 4-7 overall.

Wagner 10 – Saint Francis 7
Kyle Harbridge broke his own single season rushing record and became the first Red Flash player to run for more than 4 thousand yards in his career but it was not enough as Saint Francis fell at home.

Harbridge, a Walter Payton award nominee, scored on a 43 yard run in the first quarter. David Lopez kicked a 26 yard field goal for the Seahawks in the first and Chris Andrews hit Tyree Watkins for a 1 yard td in the second for Wagner.

In the second half, both defenses combined to allow just 156 yards of offense. The Red Flash were led by a pair of former Clairton starts, Brandon Small led with 14 tackles and a sack, Bishop Neal made 11 stops. Harbridge ran 21 times for 98 yards. Saint Francis is now 4-6 overall.

Andrews carried 24 times for 127 yards. Domonique Williams ran 25 times for 95 yards for Wagner, now 3-8.

Case Western Reserve 35 – Carnegie Mellon 32.
Rob Kalkstein ends his career as the all-time leading passer in CMU history, throwing for 332 yards and 3 scores but it was not enough as the Spartans claimed their 7th straight win in the Academic Bowl.

The senior from Gateway put the Tartans out to an early lead, hitting Tim Swanson for a 72 yard td. Billy Beecher answered for the Spartans with a 2 yard run then the Western Pa connection of Erik Olsen hitting Sean Lapcevic for a 32 yard score gave Case Western a 14-7 lead after one. Olsen hails from Bethel Park, Lapcevic from Char Valley.

Gabe Renna kicked a field goal for CMU, but Case Western came right back as Olsen hit John Mangelluzzi for a 17 yard td, Beecher tossed a halfback pass to Manny Sicre for a 6 yard td and Case Western led 28-10. Zachery Erra-Hernandez cut into the lead with a 2 yard run to make it 28-17 at the half.

CMU took the second half kickoff and drove down the field, Kalkstein hitting Gage Erdman for a 21 yard td. But Olsen connected again with Mangelluzzi for a 79 yard strike. The Tartans scored with 2:31 remaining in regulation, Kalkstein hit Bryce Pardoe for a 10 yard td, then hit Swanson for the two-pointer but could not get the ball back to try and tie the game. 

Swanson had 3 catches for 118 yards. CMU finishes 3-7. Olsen was 13 of 21 for 271 yards. Mangelluzzi had 4 catches for 136 yards. Case Western is now 5-4.

California 48 – Millersville 14
Freshman Nick Grissom ran for three touchdowns as the Vulcans end the season 7-4. The Cal defense forced four turnovers and scored twice in the fourth quarter to pull away. Jordan Bowman returned a fumble 80 yards for a score and Dewey McDonald took a Pick 6 26 yards. McDonald became the first Cal U player in over 10 years to return 3 interceptions for touchdowns in a season. Sophomore James Harris returned and threw for 233 yards on 21 of 28.

IUP 42 – Shippensburg 21
De’Antwan Williams broke the single game rushing record for the Crimson Hawks, running for 315 yards on 39 carries and 3 touchdowns. Terrill Barnes also added 6 catches for 83 yards and a score, Barnes becomes the first IUP receiver to go over 1 thousand yards in a season since 2002.

Williams closed out the game with td runs of 38 and 66 yards in the fourth quarter. Zach Zulli accounted for all 3 Red Raiders scores, throwing 2 td passes to Trevor Harmon and running for a 13 yard score. IUP ends the season at 9-2, Shippensburg at 7-4.

Gannon 44 – Lock Haven 14
The Golden Knights end at 6-5, their first winning season since 2010. Jansen Jones carried 33 times for 191 yards and 2 touchdowns, Jones set the single season record for touchdowns with 17. Justin Caliste made 7 catches for 175 yards, Quad Law grabbed 4 passes for 111 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Gannon led 24-0 in the second quarter. Liam Nadler threw for 348 yards and 2 scores, the quarterback ran for two scores. Brandon Brader ran 14 times for 109 yards. Caleb Walton and Dillon Mazzoni each threw td passes for the Bald Eagles, who finish 3-8, their best season since 2002.

Mercyhurst 37 – East Stroudsburg 20
Richie Sanders ran for 121 yards and a touchdown as the Lakers hit the road for the win and a 7-4 record. Allen Jones II also ran for 104 yards and 2 scores, the Lakers also got 55 yards from Brandon Brown-Dukes, allowing the sophomore to go over 1 thousand yards in back to back seasons, the first Mercyhurst back to do so.

Gerald Van De Cruz ran for two touchdowns for the Warriors, who also finish 7-4.

Kutztown 41 – Edinboro 10
Josh Luckenbaugh threw for 251 yards and 3 scores, two to Kodi Reed and Curtis Wortham ran for 132 yards and 2 scores as the Golden Bears blew out the Fighting Scots.

Darren Massey ran for the only Edinboro touchdown in the second quarter, Edinboro struggled offensively, Jon Girvin was 12 of 33 for 182 yards and 2 interceptions. Edinboro finishes 5-6, Kutztown 4-7.

Seton Hill 17 – Cheyney 10
The Griffins pick up their first ever PSAC win  and end a 23 game losing streak with the road win. The Wolves end the season 0-11 and have lost 21 straight games.

Cheyney took a 7-3 lead in the first quarter on a Rahmir White 37 yard interception return. Nick Hafhill hit Jarvis McClam for a 9 yard touchdown to put Seton Hill up 10-7. After Jewel Jones kicked a 24 yard field goal in the second quarter to tie the game, the score remained the same until McClam scored on a 1 yard run with 5:59 left in regulation time for the win.

McClam ran 22 times for 86 yards, Hafhill was 10-16 for 141 yards. Seton Hill ends the season 1-10.

Grove City 50 – Thiel 44 in overtime
In the battle for the Mercer County Cup, the Tomcats went to overtime for the second straight week but could not pull out the win.

Andrew Smith hit Bill Frizzi for a 4 yard touchdown with 29 seconds to play to force extra time but Brian Pell scored on a 13 yard run after Joe Diani picked off Smith to end the Thiel overtime possession to give the Wolverines the win.

Anhony Ritchie caught 2 td passes from Pell, he ran for a score and threw for another. Steve Maskrey ran 25 times for 117 yards and a score. Grove City ends the season at 5-5.

Smith threw for 299 yards and 2 scores, he also ran for 94 yards and a touchdown. Josh Potter carried 22 times for 107 yards and one score. Thiel ends 3-7, both teams finish 3-5 in the PAC.

Bethany 56 – Saint Vincent 35
The Bison jumped out to a 29-0 lead at Chuck Noll Field and handed the Bearcats their 21st straight loss and back to back winless seasons.

Matt Grimard threw for 416 yards and 6 touchdowns in the win, 4 to Eric Blinn who had 12 catches for 267 yards. Brandon Hill ran 15 times for 120 yards and a td. Bethany finishes 4-6 overall and 4-4 in the PAC.

Jaleel Morris carried 10 times for 105 yards for Saint Vincent. Andy Borgen threw for 275 yards and 2 scores. Dan Wirkowski added an 80 yard punt return for the Bearcats, who end at 0-11.