Annville, Pa. (October 9) – A touchdown reception by senior Connor Perez (Warwick, NY) in the second overtime session secured FDU-Florham football's fourth straight win, 33-27, over Lebanon Valley College in a Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) matchup this afternoon on the road.
The win for FDU-Florham, its fourth straight, pushed the Devils record to 4-1 overall and 3-0 in the MAC, while Lebanon Valley fell to 2-3 (1-2 MAC). This is the first time since the 1999 season that FDU-Florham has won four consecutive games.
Lebanon Valley drove down the field 70 yards on its first drive on 12 plays and struck first for six points as Braden Bohannon broke the plane on a 1-yard rush. That touchdown accounted for the only points in the opening quarter. The Devils nearly tied the game on their first possession as they put together a 15 play, 75-yard drive that lasted nearly eight minutes, but the Lebanon Valley defense stopped FDU-Florham on the 1-yard line on three consecutive plays.
FDU-Florham tied the game and scored three total times in the second quarter to take a 17-7 lead at halftime. Anthony Caserta (Bronx, NY) found Rory Sullivan (Hazlet, NJ) for a nine yard touchdown completion with six minutes to play in the second and after Bohannon was intercepted on the first play of the ensuing drive by Anthony Rajoppi (Springfield, NJ), Chris DiMedio (Cornwall, NY) nailed a 29-yard field goal for the 10-7 lead.
The Devils forced the Dutchmen to punt and took over possession with 1:06 to play in the first half. In just 35-seconds, FDU-Florham put together a 7 play, 55-yard drive capped by a 23-yard touchdown reception by Brendan Godfrey (Plainedge, NY) as the Devils pushed their lead to ten at 17-7 heading into the break.
Perez scored his first touchdown of the day and ninth of the season on the first FDU-Florham drive of the third. Following a 25 yard penalty by Lebanon Valley, the Devils took the ball at the four yard line and Caserta found Perez, extending FDU-Florham's lead to 24-7.
After a field goal by the hosts and a three and out by FDU-Florham, Lebanon Valley put together a 90-yard drive capped by a two-yard touchdown rush by Ian Murhon to cut their deficit to one possession, 24-17, with 13:31 to play.
Following the touchdown, both teams possessed the ball and both defenses forced punts on three straight drives. Lebanon Valley took over at its own 20-yard line with 4:36 to play and put together a 14 play, 80-yard touchdown drive tying the game at 24-24 and forcing overtime.
In the first overtime, FDU was awarded possession first and DiMedio converted a 27-yard field goal giving the Devils a 27-24 lead. On Lebanon Valley's first possession of overtime, the Dutchmen lined up on 4th and 2 from the 17-yard line and tried to get FDU-Florham to jump. It was the hosts who moved first and took a five yard penalty which set up a 39 yard field goal attempt that was converted successfully by Kevin Roberts.
Lebanon Valley took possession first in the second overtime and drove to the 4-yard line. Malachi Williams rushed the ball to the 1-yard line and coughed up the football as Anthony Cuzzocrea (Staten Island, NY)forced the fumble and recovered it in the endzone for a touchback.
All FDU needed to win was score to win the game. On first and ten, Caserta found Sullivan on back-to-back completions before Nicolas Santavicca (Yorktown Heights, NY) rushed the ball to the 1-yard line. On first and goal, Caserta completed a throw to Perez in the endzone for the 33-27 walk off win improving FDU to 4-1 on the season and 3-0 in MAC play.
Caserta ended his day with 234 yards and four touchdown passes, while Santavicca led the way for FDU with 95 yards on the ground and 79 yards through the air. Perez caught seven of Caserta's 23 passes and caught a pair of touchdowns, his ninth and tenth of the season.
Defensively, Matthew Dougherty (Wilmington, Del.) led FDU with 16 total tackles (10 solo, six assist), while Kenny Hands (Runnemede, NJ) registered 1.5 sacks, Rajoppi posted the interception and Cuzzocrea forced the fumble.
In just two seasons with FDU, Caserta has posted 3,742 passing yards which pushes him into fifth place all time on the career list surpassing Frank Plefka '93 (3,718).
FDU will return to Madison for a matchup against #7 AFCA/#10 D3Football.com Delaware Valley on Saturday, October 16 at 12:00 pm. FDU and Delaware Valley (5-0) are two of three teams left with unblemished records in the MAC. Wilkes currently sits atop the MAC standings through week six with a 4-0 record in conference play.
For the latest on FDU-Florham Athletics, follow the Devils via social media (@FDUDevils) on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Youtube.
Football Comes Away With 33-27 Double OT Win at Lebanon Valley
/seasons/2021/boxscores/20211009_zh51.xml
2021
FDU-Florham
33
Lebanon Valley
27
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | 2OT | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FDU-Florham (4-1) | 0 | 17 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 33 |
| Lebanon Valley (2-3) | 7 | 0 | 3 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 27 |
Oct 09, 2021