WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. - Williams football suffered a tough defeat against the Wesleyan Cardinals on Saturday afternoon, in front of a packed Homecoming crowd. Absent two quarterbacks due to injury, the Ephs managed to hold a two touchdown lead deep into the fourth quarter before falling 34-28 in OT.
Starting at quarterback for the Ephs was Drew Renzella in place of Owen Johansen, who missed the game with an injury. Unfortunately, Renzella also went down late in the second quarter on a sack and could not return. The Ephs inserted Mustafa Mozawalla, who battled admirably in his first collegiate action at quarterback, throwing for 129 yards and a touchdown and rushing for another 34 yards.
"[Mozawalla] did a great job," Coach Mark Raymond said. "He came in in a really tough spot and performed well, ran the offense and operated well. He did a really nice job."
After the teams traded a pair of punts to open the game, the Ephs were the beneficiaries of a botched snap on Wesleyan's punt attempt that set them up with the ball inside the red zone. The rest was all Jon Oris, as he rushed for ten yards on two carries, then caught a screen pass and cruised into the end zone untouched for a 14-yard touchdown and a 7-0 Eph lead. Oris had over 100 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns in his final home game as an Eph.
Wesleyan's next drive ended in another punt after a monster sack by Ben Yedid, and set the offense up again with good field position, this time at the Wesleyan 40. On the first play of the second quarter, the Ephs took advantage, as Renzella floated a deep ball to Henry Machnik on a crossing route towards the left pylon. Machnik caught the pass in stride and in the end zone for a 27-yard touchdown to put Williams ahead 14-0.
Wesleyan responded with a touchdown, and then both defenses got stops before the Cardinals drove downfield late in the second quarter looking to tie the game. After methodically moving his team inside the Ephs' ten yard line, Wesleyan quarterback Matt Fitzsimmons threw into the end zone on 3rd-and-7. The ball was batted into the air by the Ephs' Brandt Bickford and caught by cornerback Brady Carroll in the end zone for a touchback and a momentum-halting interception with 1:51 left in the half.
Renzella was injured on the first play of the Ephs' next drive, and Mozawalla entered, immediately throwing two completions to Daven Bailey and Riley O'Connell before the Williams drive stalled and the half ended.
Williams started the second half with a bang, as the offense got the ball and moved downfield immediately. First, Mozawalla found Zach Falls for a 39-yard completion on a crossing route. Then, he took a hit from a defender but threw a gorgeous pass to Jon Oris cutting upfield for 26 more yards. After another nice gain on a 14-yard catch-and-run by Sam Jaffe, the Ephs were set up at the five.Â
On first-and-goal, Mozawalla took the snap and threw into the end zone, in the direction of Will Baker. The ball was deflected downwards by the Wesleyan defender, but caught nonetheless by Riley O'Connell, who alertly kept his feet and body in bounds and gave the Ephs a 21-7 lead with 11:17 to play in the third quarter.
Wesleyan's next drive ended in another turnover. This time, Will Baker got to Fitzsimmons on a 3rd-and-16 and forced a fumble that he also recovered at midfield. Baker, the offense/defense hybrid, had an excellent game, finishing with 2.5 sacks and putting up relentless pressure in the pass rush.
Neither team would score again until Wesleyan found pay dirt early in the fourth quarter. After another Williams punt, Luke Mangini made a critical play to thwart the Cardinals' momentum. Fitzsimmons scanned the field and threw over the middle on a third down, where Mangini was lurking. Mangini picked off the pass and charged forty yards down the left sideline, all the way to the Wesleyan 12.
In addition to his big interception, Mangini was all over the field, finishing with eight tackles, three tackles for loss, and one sack.
Right after Mangini's interception, Jon Oris bounced outside and scored a 12-yard touchdown to put Williams ahead 28-14 with 9:17 left in the fourth quarter. And after forcing another Wesleyan punt, the Ephs seemed to be in prime position to come out with a victory.
Unfortunately, the Cardinals' offense exploded right at the end of the game. Connecting on a number of deep passes, Wesleyan found the end zone with 2:48 left in the fourth quarter and again with just 51 seconds left, forcing the game into overtime.
In OT, Williams received the ball first, and Leonardo Maiuolo's field goal was blocked. Needing a field goal to win, Wesleyan scored a touchdown in two plays, with a one-yard rush from Angelo LaRose capping the comeback and sealing the 34-28 loss for the Ephs.
Next week, Williams hopes to rebound in a road rivalry game against Amherst. The Mammoths are coming off of a 14-7 loss against Trinity. The season finale matchup kicks off at noon.
