Box Score
Post Game video: Darren Hartwell & Dylan
Schultz
WILLIAMSTOWN, MA – With 14:26 left in
regulation and Williams College leading by three touchdowns, it
appeared almost certain that this afternoon's contest between the
Ephs (2-0) and the Bantams (1-1) was not destined to achieve the
kind of heart-racing, down-to-the-wire drama that has defined the
rivalry for so many years. However, Trinity was determined to
stay true to that tradition, and they rallied to pull within a
touchdown of Williams in the final minutes of the fourth
quarter. In fact, the game actually came down to the final
play, and it took a defensive stand on the part of Williams to hold
on for the 29-21 win over the Bantams and stave off an improbable
Trinity comeback.
For Williams, this was their first defeat of Trinity since 2006
season, an undefeated 8-0 run that garnered the NESCAC
championship.
"This was a huge win for us," remarked obviously-relieved Eph
head coach Aaron Kelton. "These seniors haven't beaten
Trinity in the four years they've been here, so it was a great win
for them and as well as for the program. At the same time,
it's only Game 2…we have to keep it in the perspective of
the whole season and understand that there's a lot of work left to
do."
Aside from the final fifteen minutes of action, the game was
largely dominated by Williams. It took a few possessions for
the Eph offense to solve the quick, aggressive Bantam defense, as
their efforts to establish their formidable rushing attack yielded
little results. But the purple and gold would eventually find
the solution in the deep passing game, as the arm strength of
senior quarterback Pat Moffitt began connecting on home-run tosses
down the field in the second quarter.
The first of these was delivered to sophomore wide out Darren Hartwell,
who ran a streak down the left sideline to beat the defensive back
in single-man coverage, tracked the high-arching throw, hauled it
in, and sprinted into the endzone for an 83-yard touchdown that
shot Williams ahead 6-0. The score ended the 0-0 tie that had
lasted through half of the second frame, and the unexpected display
of offense brought the home crowd at Weston to life.
"We don't sugarcoat that we're going to run the football,"
stated Eph head coach Aaron Kelton, who remains undefeated in his
debut season. "Teams know that that's what we're going to get
when they face us. I think Trinity did a great job against
the run, but we have a lot of guys…who can make big plays on
offense as well. You saw that out there with the passing game
today."
On the next Eph possession, Moffitt and Hartwell hooked up again, in
what essentially was a carbon copy of the first touchdown, although
this reception went for 89-yards and doubled the lead,
12-0. Hartwell would finish the day with 5 catches for
208 yards and 3 touchdowns, tying him with four other Ephs for most
touchdowns in a game. The last Eph to accomplish this mark
was All-NESAC wide out Nick Caro '10.
"It's hard to cover him because he is so dynamic with his
movements," said Kelton of Hartwell. "He and our other
receivers have the kind of talent where Pat can just kind of throw
it up there and trust that his guy can go up and get it."
While this exhibition of offensive was impressive, the Eph
defense was just as outstanding, applying pressure to Trinity
senior quarterback Craig Drusbosky and causing him to make hasty
decisions. In one instance, the crowded pocket afforded
inadequate space for Drusbosky to step into his throw, and he
underthrew a long pass down the sideline as a result, a ball that
was picked off by junior Tyler Cole, who did
well to position himself and stay inbounds. On the next
Trinity series, senior Dan Canina got loose
on the edge and chased Drusbosky out of the pocket. The
quarterback was forced to throw across his body while on the move,
and his pass floated into the arms of junior defensive back Dan
O'Mara. In addition to this pick, O'Mara led the team in
total tackles (11) and solo tackles (8) for the game.
"I definitely thought we did a lot better job of getting to the
quarterback this week," said Kelton. "We forced him to make
difficult throws…and that made a huge difference."
It wasn't until midway through the third stanza that Trinity
would crack the armor of the Eph defense. The 9-play, 81-yard
drive was ignited by junior Nana Appah-Sampong's 29-yard reception,
sustained by three consecutive passing gains to senior tight end
Christopher Hunt, and finished by senior Ben Sherry's 2-yard
direct-snap rushing touchdown. This score spoiled the shutout
and cut the Eph lead in half, 15-7.
Up until that point in the third quarter, Moffitt and the
Williams offense had been undermined by interceptions, but that
Trinity touchdown seemed to retrigger their feel for the deep
pass. This time, Moffitt let one fly high and far on
1st-and-21 to senior Bryce Bennett, and
the wide-out reeled it in and ran it down to the Trinity 29
yard-line for a 61-yard gain. Then from 25 yards out, Moffitt
went to Hartwell again, finding him in the back corner of the
endzone for a 25-yard score.
On the ensuing Trinity possession, senior Dylan Schultz, who
recorded 10 total tackles (6 solo) and was seemingly omnipresent
this afternoon, and several other Eph blitzers overwhelmed
Drusboksy. The quarterback coughed up the football, and
Schultz fell on top to set his team up on the Trinity 35-yard
line. The offense would finish what the defense started, as
Moffitt lobbed a 5-yard touchdown pass to Bennett to give the Ephs
a 29-7 advantage with 14:26 left to play.
But an undaunted Trinity would not be as easy to put away as the
Ephs would have liked. Drusbosky and the Bantam offense
managed to orchestrate two touchdown drives in the span of 10
minutes, with a great debt owed to Christopher Hunt. The
tight end would register two 20-yard receptions on the first
touchdown drive (including the touchdown), and would also find open
space in the endzone for the second touchdown, a 5-yard catch that
made it a one possession game, 29-21.
Fortunately for Williams, the defense found itself and came up
big at the right time. With mere seconds to work with, the
Drusbosky-Hunt duo wasted little time advanced the ball to
midfield. From there, successive penalties against Williams
brought the Bantams inside the red zone with time left for one
play. Drusbosky heaved a toss towards the endzone, but the
Eph backfield had shielded off the Trinity receivers and the ball
fell incomplete. Williams had held on despite the unwanted
drama.
"We got a little unnerved towards the end," professed Kelton,
"and this is an issue we'll address in practice in the coming
week. We'' be taking our show on the road next Saturday,
traveling to Maine, and we'll have to prepare well if we want to
beat a solid Bates team."
Kickoff for the next week's game is scheduled for 1:00PM at
Garcelon Field in Lewiston, ME.
