SEPTEMBER
13, 2008
ITHACA FOOTBALL HOLDS OFF KINGS RALLY FOR
38-28 WIN
WILKES-BARRE –
Senior tight end Brian Weverbergh caught nine passes for 121 yards and
two touchdowns and Ithaca College held off a late King’s College rally
as the visiting Bombers posted a 38-28 non-conference victory Saturday
at Robert L. Betzler Fields.
With the win,
Ithaca, ranked 21st nationally in the latest D3Football.com poll,
improved to 2-0 on the year while King’s slipped to 1-1.
King’s would strike
first on the third possession of the game when the Monarchs recovered a
fumbled punt at the Bomber nine yard-line. On the third play of the
possession, quarterback Olayinka Soda found Mike Verbitski with a
nine-yard scoring toss to put the Monarchs on the board. Andrew DeRito
added the conversion kick as King’s took a 7-0 lead with 8:46 remaining
in he first quarter.
Ithaca would respond
in the second quarter when the Bombers put together a seven-play,
80-yard drive, capped by a 28-yard pass from Dan Juvan to Weverbergh.
Andrew Rogowski’s point after would knot the score at 7-7 with 5:50
remaining in the opening half.
Following a King’s
punt, the Bombers would put together another 80-yard drive lasting nine
plays. A 25-yard pass from Juvan to Zach Connett, followed by a 23-yard
hookup to Thomas Vossler would give Ithaca possession at the King’s 18.
The Bombers would move to the Monarch five-yard line where Juvan and
Weverbergh would hook up on their second scoring play of the day.
Rogowski made good on the extra-point try as Ithaca took a 14-7 lead
with 0:46 left in the second period.
On the ensuing
kickoff Ithaca’s Ryan Clarke forced a fumble by Matt Spencer and Bomber
teammate Tom Eschen recovered for Ithaca at the King’s 31. The Bombers
would move to the Monarch one-yard line before Rogowski booted an
18-yard field goal with 0:01 on the clock as Ithaca took a 17-7 lead
into the halftime break.
In the third
quarter, Ithaca would assume possession on its own 35-yard line and once
again began to drive downfield. The Bombers used six plays to advance
to the Monarch 33. On the next play, tailback Thomas Bergerstock rumbled
off right tackle and ran virtually untouched into the end zone.
Rogowski’s extra-point kick caromed off the right upright and barley
cleared the cross bar but the successful conversion upped the Bomber
lead to 24-7 with 11:51 remaining in the third quarter.
Ithaca would force
another Monarch punt and took over at its own 40. The Bombers would
move to the King’s 19 following a 10-yard pass from Juvan to Weverbergh.
Two plays later Juvan found Dan Ruffrage for a 19-yard touchdown pass to
give Ithaca a 31-7 lead with 6:18 left in the third quarter.
King’s, however,
refused to die and strung together a nine-play, 58-yard drive capped by
a one-yard run by Jeramia Jones. Jason Cheir blocked DeRito’s conversion
as King’s drew to within 31-13 with 1:38 left in the third period.
Midway through the
fourth quarter, King’s safety Matt Carroll would intercept a Juvan pass,
giving the Monarchs possession at midfield. An 11-yard completion to
Verbitski and a 15-yard pass interference call on the Bombers moved the
ball to the Ithaca12. Two plays later, Soda and Verbitski would connect
again on an 11-yard touchdown pass. Verbitski would then haul in the
two-point conversion to bring the Monarchs to within 31-21 with 4:26
left in the contest.
King’s would then
regain possession when Justin Zlotek recovered the ensuing onsides kick
with 4:22 left. A 32-yard completion to Verbitski and a six-yard
scramble by Soda advanced the ball to the Bomber 17-yard line. Two plays
later, Soda found Verbitski for their third scoring pass of the day with
3:11 left. DeRito added the extra-point kick, leaving the Bombers
clinging to a 31-28 lead.
The Monarchs would
force an Ithaca punt and assumed possession at its own 26 with 0:52
left. On the first play of the drive, Soda was pressured and was
flagged for an intentional grounding penalty, moving the ball back to
the King’s 19. On the next play, Andy Lonsky would seal the win for the
Bombers when he intercepted a Soda pass and raced 36-yards down the
right sideline to find the end zone. Rogowski’s point-after with 0:36
left would account for the final point of the game as the Bombers held
on for an exciting 38-28 victory.
Ithaca outgained
King’s 440-to-305 yards in total offense. Juvan completed 19-of-33
passes for 304 yards and three touchdowns. Bergerstock rushed for 138
yards on 27 carries. Vossler added three catches for 78 yards while
Ruffrage also had three receptions for 51 yards.
For King’s, Soda
completed 23-of-37 yards for 237 yards and a career-high three
touchdowns but also tossed three interceptions. Verbitski was
outstanding for King’s, making eight receptions for 106 yards and three
scores. Bob Cirko caught five passes for 46 yards while Justin Dalton
added four catches for 38 yards. King’s was held to just 68 rushing
yards on 32 carries by the Bombers, led by Jones with 40 yards on 20
attempts
King's will return
to the field Saturday when the Monarchs travel to Hampden-Sydney College
for a 1:00 p.m. contest in Hamden-Sydney, Virginia.
