Warriors knock off MAC preseason favorite Aggies, 24-14
DOYLESTOWN, Pa. – Third-and-eight, 17-yard line. Fourth quarter. Three-point game. That was the scene as a Delaware Valley defensive lineman broke through the line and sent sophomore Tyler Jenny (Coalport, Pa./Glendale) rolling for the sideline. He saw his opening and uncorked a perfect spiral to the right corner of the end zone, where senior Jarrin Campman (Clearfield, Pa./Clearfield) reeled it in with 5:52 left, helping seal the Lycoming College football team's 24-14 win over No. 22 Delaware Valley in both team's Middle Atlantic Conference opener on Saturday, Sept. 8, at Robert Lipinski Field.
"This week, we made it more just about us," Lycoming head coach Mike Clark said. "Not that we weren't concerned about them, because they are good. Their quarterback is very good. They are very skilled defensively. We're proud of what we were able to accomplish today."
Jenny, in just his second start, led the Warriors (1-1 overall, 1-0 MAC) to their fourth win over a ranked team in the last five years. Campman, meanwhile, finished with 12 of the team's 24 points, also falling on the ball in the end zone in the second quarter for a fumble recovery touchdown.
Defensively, the Warriors bent, but never broke, while facing one of the league's most dynamic players in sophomore quarterback Aaron Wilmer, the 2011 MAC Rookie of the Year. Wilmer threw for 255 yards of 17-of-37 passing, but he was sacked six times, including four from senior Nate Oropollo (Aldan, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara) and 1.5 from junior Dwight Hentz (Halifax, Pa./Halifax).
After falling behind 7-0 in the first quarter, the Warriors began to change field position throughout the first quarter, and a punt by junior Zack Czap (Philipsburg, Pa./Philipsburg-Osceola) left Delaware Valley inside their 10-yard line. After a three-and-out, the Warriors got the ball back at the Aggies' 48-yard line. A pair of passes and three rushes moved the ball 32 yards and helped set up a 31-yard field goal from Czap.
A pair of sacks, two from Oropollo, helped push Delaware Valley into another three-and-out and a fortuitous bounce came the Warriors way when the quarter ended and forced the Aggies to kick into the wind, leading the Warriors starting the first drive of the second quarter at the 47-yard line.
From there, the Warriors pounded the ball inside, running the ball seven times in a row and capping the drive with a one-yard sneak by Jenny for the touchdown on fourth down, giving Lycoming its first lead over the Aggies since 2008, 10-7.
Another sack from Oropollo ended Delaware Valley's next drive and Lycoming marched 80 yards on eight plays, capping the drive with a crazy touchdown play, as junior Matt Atkinson (Media, Pa./Penncrest) caught a cross pattern and reached for the end zone, but the ball was knocked loose. However, as the ball dribbled through the end zone, Campman fell on it to give Lycoming a 10-point advantage heading into the break.
The Aggies' offense was able to move the ball in the third quarter, but Lycoming never broke, as senior Roger Jayne (Harveys Lake, Pa./Lake Lehman) blocked a field goal attempt from 21 yards. However, a partially blocked punt gave Delaware Valley the ball at the Lycoming 39-yard line. The Aggies used that to score on the first play of the fourth quarter, cutting the lead to three points.
After a three-and-out by the Warriors, the Aggies moved past midfield, but back-to-back breakups, one from sophomore Kody Flail (Frackville, Pa./North Schuylkill) and one from Tanner Troutman (Hegins, Pa./Tri-Valley) ended the drive.
The Warriors responded with a long drive, with sophomore John Sibel (Morrisville, Pa./Pennsbury) catching two passes for first downs and senior Parker Showers (Aspers, Pa./Biglerville) adding a 12-yard run, helping them run the clock to less than 6:00. On third-and-8, after a false start by Lycoming, the Warriors sealed the win as Jenny lofted a beautiful spiral to Campman to help Lycoming retake the 10-point lead.
Delaware Valley drove to the 20-yard line, but a set of great plays by Troutman helped Lycoming force a turnover on downs with just more than 4:00 left. Lycoming ran the ball three straight times to run the ball under 2:30 and Czap downed his punt at the Delaware Valley 32-yard line.
The Aggies got out to a quick start, forcing a fumble on Lycoming's first offensive drive and scored on a six-play, 51-yard drive. Aaron Wilmer made a huge third-down completion conversion on a 33-yard pass to Lewis Vincent that got the ball to the two-yard line before Kyle Schuberth scored on the next play.
Jenny finished 12-of-20 with two touchdowns and 134 yards. He was picked off once and gave up one sack. Atkinson completed one pass for seven yards, ran seven times for 32 yards and caught two passes for 19 yards.
The Warriors reeled in 175 yards on the ground, as sophomore Craig Needhammer (Lansdale, Pa./North Penn) ran 14 times for 57 yards, Showers finished with 54 yards and Jenny also added 32 yards on seven rushes.
Sibel led the receivers with four catches for 37 yards, freshman Ryan Umpleby (Forest Hill, Md./Fallston) added three for 43 and Campman posted two catches for 31 yards and two scores.
Schuberth led the Aggies with 84 yards and two touchdowns on 22 rushes and Wilmer added 49 yards on 17 attempts. Chris Ruiz and Rasheed Bailey each had four catches.
Defensively, Troutman led the Warriors with nine stops, a tackle for loss, an interception and two breakups. Bukasa added nine stops and Hentz posted eight, 1.5 sacks and two tackles for loss. Oropollo notched seven tackles and four sacks. Sophomore Kyle Sullivan (Coatesville, Pa./Bishop Shanahan) posted six tackles and a breakup.
John Robinson led the Aggies with eight tackles and an interception and Dwayne Shaw added seven stops and 2.5 for loss.
The Warriors get back on the field on Saturday, Sept. 15, when Lebanon Valley comes to David Person Field for a 1 p.m. Middle Atlantic Conference game.
