SEPTEMBER 23, 2006
KING'S DEFEATS ALBRIGHT 38-14 TO CLAIM SHARE OF
FIRST-PLACE IN MAC
(Searfass Completes 14 Straight Passes To Lead
Monarch Attack)
WILKES-BARRE -- Junior quarterback Jeff Searfass
completed 17-of-18 passes, including the first 14 of the game, for 214
yards and three touchdowns to lead host King's College to a 38-14 Middle
Atlantic Conference victory over Albright College Saturday at Betzler
Fields.
With the win, King's improved to 3-1 overall and
3-0 in the MAC, while Albright slipped to 0-3 and 0-2. King's and
cross-town rival Wilkes University stands as the only unbeaten teams in
MAC play as both squads are deadlocked in first-place with identical 3-0
marks.
King's would push across the game's first points following an
interception by Bob Cirko as the Albright 22 when Tim Lust booted a
39-yard field goal to give the Monarchs a 3-0 lead with 8:46 remaining
in the opening quarter.
Following an Albright punt, the Monarchs would use
a 27-yard completion from Searfass to Sean Viers to advance to the Lion
33. Four plays later, Searfass would hook up with Mike Verbitski for a
21-yard scoring strike. Lust added the point-after to extend the King's
advantage to 10-0 with 4:48 left in the first period.
After forcing an Albright punt on the next possession, King's would
strike again. A 13-yard pass from Searfass to Chris Maloney was followed
by a 26-yard completion to Bernie Mullen to give the Monarchs a first
down at the Lion 26. After a 13-yard run by Joe Tassoni moved the ball
to the 13, John Ortiz carried for six yards, then added a seven-yard
touchdown run on the next play to add to the King's lead. Lust connected
on the extra-point as King's lead swelled to 17-0 with 14:16 remaining
in the half.
The Monarchs would force a third straight Albright punt and would take
advantage when the kick traveled just nine yards, giving King's
possession at the Albright 33. A six-yard run by Ortiz and a 22-yard
passes from Searfass to Maloney would give the Monarchs a first-and-goal
at the two. Two plays later, Searfass would find tight end Mike Sheil
alone in the end zone as the Monarchs would score on their fourth
straight possession. Lust's conversion would give King's a 24-0 lead
with 9:32 remaining in the half.
King's would again capitalize on an Albright turnover when the Lions
were in the midst of their best scoring opportunity of the half. After
forcing a King's punt from deep in its own territory, the Lions took
over at the Monarch 41-yard line. Jason Heintzleman would break off a
10-yard run, but was stripped of the ball by King's safety Craig Haywood
and Monarch linebacker Tom Tulaney would recover to end the scoring
threat.
The Monarchs would capitalize thanks to an 18-yard pass from Searfass to
Mullen and a 23-yard run by Jeramia Jones to give King's a
first-and-goal from the Albright four. Two plays later, Searfass hit
Maloney with a four-yard scoring strike with 0:55 on the clock and Lust
added the point-after to give King's a 31-0 lead at the half.
King's dominated the first half statistically, amassing 281 yards of
total offense compared to just 90 for Albright. The Monarchs ran 42
first-half plays compared to 24 for the Lions.
In the third quarter, King's would force another Albright punt and
assumed possession at the Lion 47-yard line. The Monarchs would
methodically drive to the Albright 15-yard line thanks to four straight
carries totaling 21 yards by Jeff Field. Ortiz would then rush for seven
yards to give the Monarchs a first-and-goal from the eight. On the next
play, Ortiz would break a pair of tackles before finding the end zone to
complete an eight-yard touchdown run. Lust would convert his fourth
straight point-after as King's lead grew to 38-0 with 8:18 left in the
third quarter.
Albright would close out the scoring with a pair of fourth-quarter
touchdowns when Heintzleman scored on runs of 14 and five yards, the
last coming with 3:49 left in the contest.
Searfass enjoyed his best game to date in his first season as the
starter. The Monarch signal-caller entered the contest with two
touchdown passes over the first three games but surpassed his season
total in just two quarters of play against Albright.
Ortiz, who set an NCAA Division III record with 59 carries in a 29-27
loss to Albright last season, finished the game with 82 yards on 17
carries and two scores. Jones ran for a career-high 73 yards on 12
carries while Field chipped in with 33 yards on 11 attempts. Mullen led
the Monarch receivers with four catches for 70 yards while Maloney also
tallied four receptions for 44 yards. Sheil and Joe Tassoni chipped in
with two catches each as Searfass connected with nine different players
throughout the game.
Tanner Kelly led Albright by completing 12-of-21 passes for 141 yards
and an interception. Heintzleman, who rushed for just 13 yards in the
first half, finished with 91 yards on 14 carries, the majority coming
long after the game was decided. Nate Roming caught two passes for 43
yards to lead the Lion receivers.
Haywood led the Monarch defense with 10 tackles,
all solo, while freshman linebacker Matt Little continued his solid play
with 10 tackles, including seven solo stops. John Solano chipped in with
seven tackles for the Monarchs.
King's will return to action on Saturday when the
Monarchs travel to meet Susquehanna University at 2:00 p.m. in
Selinsgrove.
