OCTOBER 23, 2004
BOB ZIADIE
JACKSON SURPASSES 5,000-YARD MARK WITH 256-YARD
EFFORT AT KING'S DOWNS SUSQUEHANNA 49-35
WILKES-BARRE -- Senior tailback Richard Jackson
rushed for 256 yards on 36 caries and scored a school-record five
touchdowns as host King's College posted a 49-35 Homecoming Day victory
over Susquehanna University Saturday Betzler Fields.
With the win, King's improved to 3-5 overall and 3-4
in the Middle Atlantic Conference while Susquehanna slipped to 3-4 and
2-4.
King's struck first when Craig Haywood returned the
opening kickoff 79 yards to the Susquehanna eight. Two plays later,
Jackson scored from four yards out and Bobby Nawrocki's conversion gave
the Monarchs a 7-0 lead just 0:48 into the game.
Three possessions later, Jackson scored on a 52-yard
run to give King's a 14-0 lead with 10:14 remaining in the first quarter.
Susquehanna would reach the scoreboard following a Ben Gibboney
interception at the Monarch 25. Dennis Robertson would his Jason Eck with
a 25-yard scoring strike to bring the Crusaders to within 14-7 with 6:44
left in the period.
The Monarchs would then go on a nine-play, 70-yard
drive, capped by a five-yard scoring run by John Ortiz. Two possessions
later, King's would score again when Jackson broke loose for a 50-yard
scoring run to push the Monarch advantage to 28-7 with 10:09 remaining in
the second period. Susquehanna would later close to within 28-14 when Eck
score from one yard out with 2:21 left in the half.
In the third period, The Crusaders took the
second-half kickoff and marched 82 yards on 13 plays, scoring on a
three-yard run by Eck to close to within 28-21 with 9:50 remaining in the
period.
King's would pad the lead when Chris Barnic hit
Jackson for a 33-yard scoring pass to push the score to 35-21. The
Monarchs then took over at the Crusader 37 following a 29-yard punt return
by Derek Zambino. On a fourth-and-goal play from the two-yard line, Barnic
would score on a perfectly executed bootleg to up the lead to 42-21 on the
first play of the fourth quarter.
the Monarchs continued to pour it on when Jackson
capped an eight-play, 66-yard drive with a 13-yard run, his fourth rushing
and fifth overall touchdown of the game to give King's a 49-21 lead with
9:51 left in the contest. Susquehanna responded with a seven-play 64-yard
drive as Justin Wutti hit Duane Park for a 22-yard touchdown pass to bring
the Crusaders to within 49-28 with 7:26 remaining.
Susquehanna would recover the onside lick and closed
to within 49-35 when Wutti found Park on a 16-yard scoring play with 4:39
remaining. The Crusaders would again recover the onside kick but were
unable to score as Nick Sorino ended the threat with an interception in
the end zone with 1:09 remaining as the Monarchs ran out the clock.
King's outgained Susquehanna 437-to-378 while
holding a 329-151 advantage in rushing yards. Both teams registered 21
first downs.
Jackson became just the 13th runner in Division III
history to surpass the 5,000-yard career rushing plateau, moving up to
5,042 yards. He was aided in the backfield by sophomore fullback Joe
Tassoni who rushed for a career-high 74 yards on eight attempts. Barnic
was 6-of-14 for 108 yards while Blake Letchford caught three passes for 59
yards. Zambino led King's with 13 solo tackles.
Chris Ross led Susquehanna on the ground with 62
yards on 11 carries while Eck added 53 yards on 13 attempts with two
scores. Park made six receptions for 98 yards while Dennis Robertson and
Wutti combined to complete just 14-of-49 passes for 227 yards and three
scores.
