WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — There were plenty of tricks and treats for everyone at Farley-Lamb Field on Saturday afternoon, but after several scares in the fourth quarter, the Williams College players were able to take off their masks and savor their goodies with a 34-25 victory over visiting Hamilton College. First-year Jack Fabiano ran for 257 yards — the most rushing yards by an Eph in 35 years — and three touchdowns on 26 carries for Williams (5-2), plus made a touchdown-saving tackle late in the game to preserve an eight-point lead.

"Jack was a force today," Williams Head Coach Mark Raymond said after the game. "He used his blockers well and got stronger as the game went on. And the tackle he made on the fumble return was a big-time play. He had great awareness and came up big when we needed it most."

"Our run game was on yesterday, and our O-line made it much easier for me," Fabiano stated. "Half the time I was untouched for the first 5 yards, which allowed us to be able to push the ball down the field. All I had to do was just follow our blockers and Hamilton was not able to stop us."

The Continentals (2-5) provided plenty of frights worthy of a haunted house for the faithful crowd of 973, particularly over the final 18 minutes of the game.

After Fabiano scored his first touchdown of the day on a 39-yard scamper early in the third quarter, Williams held a 21-13 advantage. Hamilton then used up more than seven-and-a-half minutes in response, putting together a 14-play, 75-yard drive that ended with Connor Laverty crossing the goal line from a yard out. A two-point conversion would have tied the score, but quarterback Luke Kurzum, who threw for 308 yards on the day, could not connect with his receiver in the end zone, leaving the Ephs with a 21-19 lead.

When Williams faced 4th-and-11 from its own 45, the punting unit was sent onto the field, only to provide a trick on the Continental defense. Though it appeared the play worked, the reverse run netted only 8 yards, giving the Continentals the ball at their 47 shortly before the end of the third quarter. The Eph defense was up to the task, however, forcing Hamilton to punt after three plays.

Then it was Williams' turn to grind the clock. All but one of the 11 plays on its 80-yard drive were rushes, and all but one of those runs were by Fabiano, including the final six plays, ending with a 6-yard scoring scamper. With an opportunity to make it a two-score game with a successful extra point, the Ephs watched in horror as the kick sailed wide left, leaving the door open for the bogeyman to pounce.

Again the Williams defense was up to the task, denying the Continentals a first down. The visitors went for it on 4th-and-2 from their own 28 only to have junior lineman Will Baker pounce out of the shadows and sack Kurzum for a turnover on downs with just 5:09 remaining.

The Ephs first play was unsurprisingly a Fabiano run, and Hamilton called a timeout to preserve the precious clock. On the next play, senior quarterback Drew Renzella, who replaced first-year starter Drew Weiler after he suffered an injury late in the first half, connected with junior receiver Zach Walls on a short pass. But while Falls was being held up by one defender at the 25, Brody Harrington stole the candy and high-tailed it toward the other end zone. That's when Fabiano changed into his defensive costume and sprinted after Harrington, catching him from behind just shy of midfield.

With new life, Hamilton drove into the red zone by passing for three first downs to the Eph 17. A sack by first-year Danny Montesano pushed the Continentals back 5 yards, and two incompletions left them facing 4th-and-15 from the 22. The two-minute timeout gave Hamilton a chance to catch its breath, and Kurzum connected with Jack Hoag in the end zone for a shocking touchdown. But the potential game-tying two-point conversion was unsuccessful once again as Kurzum's pass was short of his target on a quick cross.

Now all Williams needed to do was survive the ensuing onside kick. Somehow the ball bounded pass the initial line of Ephs, bobbing like an apple all the way down to the Williams 22 before senior Wyatt Cotton could corral it among the sprawling bodies. But more surprises still awaited both teams.

Following a Fabiano 2-yard gain and Hamilton's final timeout, the Ephs fumbled the next handoff to the ground. Of course it was Fabiano there to save the day, diving on the loose ball to maintain possession. If the crowd couldn't see his Superman cape by that point, he made sure they did on the next play, sprinting 83 yards for his final touchdown with 36 seconds to go. Only when the PAT sailed through the uprights to give Williams a 9-point (and two-score) lead was the Continental monster vanquished.

"Our players and coaches did a great job staying focused throughout the ebbs and flows of the game," Coach Raymond said with relief. "They all showed great composure and made some big plays when it mattered. And Drew [Renzella] has done a great job all year being a leader and keeping himself sharp for whenever the opportunity to play comes. He has prepared like a starter all season, and it showed with his performance today."

Renzella completed 6-of-9 throws for 93 yards, including a 56-yard touchdown pass to Falls with a minute to play in the first half (having replaced Weiler at the two-minute timeout), giving the Ephs their first lead of the game at 14-13, one which they never relinquished. Weiler threw for the other Williams touchdown, a 6-yard strike to sophomore Jake Palm, the first catch of his career, tying the game at seven early in the second quarter.

Next up for the Ephs is a NESCAC and Little Three showdown at Wesleyan (6-1) next Saturday at 1 p.m. The Cardinals shut out Bowdoin today, 28-0, to bounce back from its Little Three loss at Amherst last Saturday. Fans unable to make the trek to Corwin Stadium can watch the game live through the Northeast Sports Network portal online at nsnsports.net.

Notes: The only rusher with more yards in a game for the Ephs was Sean Rorke '93, who galloped for 274 at Wesleyan in a 24-14 victory on Nov. 2, 1991, two days shy of exactly 35 years ago … Falls' 56-yard touchdown catch pushed him past 1,000 career yards, making him the 17th player in program history to surpass the milestone … Williams has won the last four meetings with Hamilton and improved to 50-10 all-time in the series … in Coach Raymond's 11 years and 10 seasons at the helm, the Ephs are 39-3 when leading at the half, even if only by a single point like today.