WILLIAMSPORT, Penn. - Sophomore wide receiver
Dallas West (East Hartford, Conn.) caught a 15-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback
Dylan Jackson (Monroe, Conn.) to give WestConn a first-quarter lead. However, it was the Wolves' only score as Lycoming College scored 48 unanswered points in a 48-7 win on Saturday at Girardi Stadium in front of a crowd of 1,089.
WestConn opened the game with a 16-play, 80-yard drive that took 8:30. Jackson ran for a 16-yard gain on 3rd-and-15 and found senior wide receiver Serge Lagardere (Stamford, Conn.) for gains of 11 and 13 yards. Junior wide receiver Jayden Leroy (Danbury, Conn.) snagged a 13-yard catch on 3rd-and-1, and West's touchdown catch came on 2nd-and-11. Sophomore kicker/punter Gavin Damboise (Bristol, Conn.) converted the extra point for a 7-0 lead with 6:24 left in the first quarter.
Lycoming answered with a 10-play, 65-yard drive that ended with a two-yard touchdown run by quarterback Joe Lyons. On WestConn's next play, Jackson fumbled, Lycoming recovered at the WestConn six-yard line, and Terrence Oliver scurried into the end zone just 24 seconds later to make it 14-7.
WestConn turned the ball over twice more in the second quarter. Jackson fumbled after a sack, and Khalil Johnson returned the loose ball 35 yards for a touchdown. After Spencer Ferguson's 1-yard run made it 28-7, WestConn drove to the Lycoming 26 but turned the ball over on downs, with sophomore quarterback Joseph Motes (Rocky Hill, Conn.) sacked on fourth down.
In the second half, Jackson was intercepted by Aiden Barlett early in the third quarter. Brendan Clark then caught a 55-yard touchdown pass from Lyons on the first play of Lycoming's next drive to make it 35-7. A 14-play, 32-yard drive by WestConn that took 6:19 ended on downs at the Lycoming 19. Lycoming continued to pour it on late in the contest, adding a 1-yard touchdown run by Elijah Jordan and a 2-yard scamper by Dylan Cerciello in the fourth quarter.
WestConn finished with 177 total yards, 159 passing and 18 rushing. WestConn recorded four turnovers to Lycoming's one, and was called for 10 penalties for 75 yards. Jackson went 12-for-24 for 116 yards with a touchdown and an interception, and Motes was 3-for-4 for 43 yards. Leroy had 5 catches for 51 yards, and Lagardere had 5 for 45. Senior running back Quasim Benson (Wilmington, Del.) finished with 17 carries, and sophomore running back Donald Highsmith (Middletown, Conn.) tallied 23 yards on three carries, including a 14-yard run.
Junior linebacker Jordan Tyler (Bay Shore, N.Y.) led WestConn's defense with nine tackles, a sack and a fumble recovery. Junior defensive end Joshua Sampson (Waterbury, Conn.) added a sack, forced a fumble and recovered one, while junior safety J.D. Harrison (Huntington Station, N.Y.) earned six tackles. Damboise punted five times for a 35.8-yard average.
Lycoming was led by Oliver's 93 rushing yards and a touchdown on 19 carries and Lyons's 114 passing yards and a touchdown. Trinity Hill-Caleb racked up three sacks and five tackles for loss.
WestConn falls to 2-4 overall and 1-2 in conference play, while Lycoming improves to 5-3 and 4-0. The Wolves will look to bounce back when they host Juniata College in a league battle on Halloween. Kick-off is slated for 1 p.m.
