BEAVER FALLS, Pa. -- Three third quarter touchdowns and a dominant defensive performance propelled the Washington & Jefferson College football team to a 28-3 in a Presidents' Athletic Conference matchup Saturday night at Reeves Field in Beaver County.
Senior quarterback Jacob Adams (Louisville, Ohio/Louisville) completed 24-of-36 pass attempts for a season-high 311 yards. Jordan Halford (Gainesville, Va./Battlefield) put together a big performance in the passing game, as the junior wide receiver recorded career highs in receptions (10) and receiving yards (211). The 211 yards receiving were the most by a W&J receiver since Andrew Wolf racked up 214 receiving yards against St. John Fisher in the 2018 season opener.
The defense came through with a solid performance as well in the victory, as the unit limited Geneva to 19 passing yards and forced three turnovers (all fumbles) on the evening.
Geneva used a lengthy opening drive to advance the ball deep inside of W&J territory. The 12-play, 73-yard drive stalled out on a fourth and two from the three-yard line. Junior defensive back Max Garda (Lower Burrell, Pa./Burrell) forced a fumble that was recovered by sophomore linebacker Mitch DeZort (Tarentum, Pa./Highlands) in the end zone for a touchback.
After the two teams traded a pair of punts, W&J drove deep into Geneva territory before coming up short on a 4th and 5 play inside the 10-yard line. The turnover on downs kept the game remain scoreless with 14:13 left in the second quarter.
On W&J's next possession, the Red and Black drove deep into Geneva territory once again before a fumble ended the threat at the Geneva six-yard line.
Later in the second quarter, Adams hit junior wide receiver Cameron O'Brien for a 14-yard touchdown pass on 4th down. The extra point by freshman Ian Phillips (Steubenville, Ohio/Steubenville) made the score 7-0 Presidents with 3:12 remaining in the half. The touchdown pass capped a seven-play, 73-yard drive.
A 22-yard field goal by Geneva's Daniel Nordaas cut the Presidents' lead to 7-3 with 17 seconds left in the first half.
Despite putting up just seven points over the first 30 minutes, Adams completed 17-of-25 passes for 202 yards and a touchdown in the first half.
Midway through the third quarter, the Presidents extended their lead on a 12-yard touchdown run by Jordan West(Washington, Pa./Washington). The point after by Phillips made the score 14-3 W&J with 7:26 to play in the quarter.
After a quick three and out by the W&J defense, the Presidents marched 55 yards on just five plays to find the end zone again. The big play on the drive was a 49-yard catch and run by Halford that set W&J up with first and goal. West then capped the drive with a one-yard touchdown at the 3:39 mark of the third. The point after by Phillips made the score 21-3.
With just 31 seconds left in the third quarter, junior EJ Thompson (La Plata, Md./Thomas Stone) raced 27 yards into the end zone to give W&J its third touchdown of the quarter. The point after by Phillips stretched the Presidents advantage to 28-3.
West finished with 78 yards rushing and two touchdowns while picking up five yards receiving on eight catches. Garda collected a team-high 11 tackles and Keith Knowell (McKeesport, Pa./McKeesport) registered 10 tackles in the victory.
The win improves the Presidents to 5-2 overall and 4-2 in the PAC. The loss drops Geneva to 3-4 overall and 3-3 in the PAC.
The Presidents host conference rival Westminster College for a Presidents' Athletic Conference matchup on Saturday, Oct. 26. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Cameron Stadium.
W&J overpowers Geneva in 28-3 victory
/seasons/2019/boxscores/20191019_3boo.xml
2019
Washington and Jefferson
28
Geneva
3
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington and Jefferson (5-2) | 0 | 7 | 21 | 0 | 28 |
| Geneva (3-4) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Oct 19, 2019