It started with kicker Connor Foley whose kickoffs reached the end zone all day long. With Bloomsburg starting at their own 25, the defense quickly forced the Huskies into what they fear most – throwing the ball in throwing situations. On third and eight, safety Kevin Malone picked off a pass and returned it 31 yards to the Bloomsburg 8. Unfortunately, first and goal is an area where the Golden Ram offense has struggled this season and they settled for a Brendan Paulison 20-yard field goal for an early 3-0 lead.
Bloomsburg’s next possession went even better for the Golden Rams when defensive end George Shipp ran a stunt and registered a sack in the end zone for a safety. Trailing 5-0, the Husky offense fared only slightly better on their third possession when they made it to fourth down and punted. Starting at midfield, the Golden Rams quickly made their way to the end zone. It started with a Pat Moriarty to Tim Brown completion to move the chains, three runs by Brandon Monk for another first down, an iffy pass interference penalty against Bloomsburg and finally a ten-yard Moriarty to Brown touchdown pass.
Tim Brown with his fourth touchdown this season (Photo Bert Garbutt)Trailing 12-0, Bloomsburg got their first first down of the game before a pass was picked by cornerback Ted Patton and returned 41 yards to the Husky three-yard line. This time, West Chester converted in the “goal to go” situation and Monk broke a tackle in the backfield, then slipped through the right side for the score. With West Chester leading 19-0 and the Bloomsburg offense not getting any traction, fears of 2011 started to enter the stadium. But the Golden Ram defense looked to spell those concerns when they forced another three-and-out.
However, Monk bobbled and lost the ensuing punt, giving Bloomsburg their first offensive play beyond their own 30-yard line. Neither team could do much offensively for most of the second quarter and on another Bloomsburg punt, Monk touched, but failed to control the bounding ball. This time the Huskies would not squander the great field position and went 30 yards in eight plays to make the halftime score 19-7 in favor of West Chester. Prior to that final drive, Bloomsburg had a total of nine yards of offense and one first down. Although West Chester managed only 99 yards and five first downs, the field position clearly led to West Chester’s points.
The third quarter was much of the same as neither team scored. After an 11-yard sack by Shipp and a 12-yard sack by Andrew Cohen, Bloomsburg netted a total of -5 yards in the period. Midway through the fourth quarter, the Huskies got going, aided by some Golden Ram penalties.
The defense celebrates George Shipp's safety (Photo Bert Garbutt)With Bloomsburg facing third and long pinned back at their own seven-yard line, West Chester was called for their own iffy pass interference penalty (same official as the previous one that went against the Huskies in the first quarter, by the way). A short run was then aided by another fifteen yard penalty against West Chester for unnecessary roughness. Then a 48-yard bomb set up a one-yard touchdown plunge and all of a sudden, Bloomsburg was back in the game, trailing just 19-14.
Needing to settle things down and consume some clock, West Chester did none of that. A kick return only to the 19 was further dampened by a holding penalty. It was a tough couple of minutes for Kyle Keyser who was called for the unnecessary roughness penalty, beaten on the long pass, and then committed the hold on the kick return. And bad went to worse when Jarel Elder lost a fumble on the first play from scrimmage. It took Bloomsburg three plays, but they managed to move the ball eight yards for the touchdown and took a 22-19 lead after the two-point conversion.
With the momentum totally in favor of Bloomsburg with under four minutes left, West Chester got good field position after a 25-yard kick return by Elder coupled with a personal foul against Bloomsburg. Completions to Adam Dempsey and Brown put the ball at the Bloomsburg 32. Facing a third-and-six, Moriarty found Brown who bowled over Bloomsburg defenders for a 24-yard pickup. Eerin Young finished the drive with a four-yard touchdown run that restored West Chester’s lead, 26-22.
With Bloomsburg needing a touchdown in 93 seconds, they managed to get down to the West Chester 25-yard line, converting a fourth-and-one along the way. But Shaquil James made West Chester’s third interception of the game and returned it 92 yards for the score to start the homecoming celebration.
Bloomsburg completed eight passes to Huskies for 106 yards and no touchdowns, but three to Golden Rams for 164 yards and one touchdown….Brown, despite an obviously splinted right pinky finger, led the way with six catches for 84 yards and a touchdown…Paulison was perfect on place kicks – four PAT’s and one field goal for seven points – and dropped two of his six punts inside the Bloomsburg 20….Bloomsburg ran 69 offensive plays, but ten of them resulted in negative yards and three in turnovers…The Golden Ram defensive front four dominated the Bloomsburg offensive line which features several All-PSAC East players. Shipp (6 tackles, 2.0 sacks), Kavon Johnson (6 tackles, 1.0 TFL), Josh Ganzelli (6 tackles) and Cohen (4 tackles, 2.0 sacks, 4 QB hurries) were in the Husky backfield all day…Shannon Mayer and Blaise Schieler were not dressed, and West Chester incurred several injuries during the contest. Monk was later seen in a boot, Eddie Elliott did not return, Devan LaBau continues to be hobbled, Kavon Johnson left the field on crutches and after playing early, Sean Boylan was in street clothes at the end of the game...The game will be rebroadcast by The Comcast Network on Tuesday, October 27 at 6:00 pm.
West Chester Athletic Site - West Chester Survives A Scare On Homecoming, 33-22
Bloomsburg Athletic Site - Football Team's Rally Falls Short at West Chester
Sunbury Daily Item - Bloomsburg's rally falls short
Football Stories - West Chester Wins in a Wild Finish
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