Box Score WILLIAMSTOWN, MA—Hamilton College ended a 25 game losing streak with a 20-17 road win over Williams College.
With 7:13 remaining in the opening quarter, Williams got on the board first with a 37-yard field goal by sophomore kicker Bobby Webster after a long punt return by senior Mark Pomella gave the Ephs great field position to start the drive.
Hamilton answered on the following drive with a 41-yard touchdown pass by sophomore quarterback Cole Freeman to junior receiver Charles Ensley that gave the Continentals a 7-3 lead.
The Ephs regained the lead with 6:58 remaining in the half on a nine-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Austin Lommen to senior receiver Darrias Sime. A 67-yard pass from Lommen to Pomella put Williams in scoring position. The ensuing extra point was missed to leave the Eph lead at 9-7.
The Continentals took back the lead on the opening drive of the second half with another touchdown pass from Freeman to Ensley, this time from 21-yards out, which brought the score to 14-9 in Hamilton's favor.
Williams was able to answer again with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Lommen to Sime that came with under a minute remaining in the third quarter. Lommen would throw to sophomore receiver Adam Regensburg for the two-point conversion, giving the Ephs a 17-14 lead.
Hamilton would score on the following possession on a three-yard run by first year running back Kory Fogarty with 11:16 left in the game. Senior defensive lineman James Howe blocked the ensuing extra point attempt to keep the Continentals' lead to 20-17. Hamilton would not relinquish this lead for the remainder of the game.
Williams was able to pass the ball efficiently with Austin Lommen throwing for 242 yards. Mark Pomella gained 89 receiving yards and Darrius Sime notched 83 receiving yards of his own. The Ephs were able to gain 63 yards on the ground.
"I thought we ran it a little better today," said Williams head coach Aaron Kelton. "We did some things to help the rushing game a little bit. The offensive line played relatively well. We'll see the tape and see how it works out, but we got better at it and we have to keep pounding it a little bit here and there and do what we have to do to try and set it up with the passing game and spread them out, get less guys in the box. We were able to do that today. We had some positive runs."
Hamilton rushed the ball well, at times using a wildcat formation with sophomore running back Lashawn Russell-Ware taking snaps. He would put up 68 of his team's 112 rushing yards. The Continentals would gain 180 yards through the air.
Senior Elijah Eaton led the Ephs with nine total tackle including seven solos. Senior Alex Mitko led the Continental's defense with 10 tackles, eight of which were solos.
Discipline was a problem for the Ephs. They would finish with 11 penalties amounting to 104 yards.
"It's about our discipline and not being selfish and we were not able to do that," said Coach Kelton. "They have to decide if they want to be a good team." He would go on to add, "We preach the discipline. We work at it every day. I talk about it every day and it was a bit of a selfish feeling for some guys out there."
This victory is Hamilton's first over Williams since 1996 and the first in Williamstown since 1986 and ends a 25-game losing streak for the Continentals.
The Ephs will travel to Wesleyan take on the Cardinals next weekend in their first Little Three matchup of the season. Hamilton will also be on the road facing Middlebury.
