Box Score WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – Sophomore running back Josh Kleinfelter set the all-time Lycoming record for carries in a game as the Warriors rolled over Susquehanna, 28-16, at David Person Field on Saturday, Sept. 28. The win was the first in the career of head coach Mike Clark.
“It means a lot to get my first win here at Lycoming,” said Clark, dripping with water after getting the ceremonial cooler dumped over him as time expired. “We were all motivated after the Ithaca game because we felt we could have won that game. We wanted to come out here today and prove that we could win.”
Kleinfelter (Bellwood, Pa.) carried the ball 42 times for a career-high 229 yards and three touchdowns to lead Lycoming’s potent offensive attack. He broke the previous record of 39 attempts, set by Tim Deasey in a game against Juniata in 2001.
“He is a special back,” said Clark. “We know that if we give him the ball and a little bit of room, great things are going to happen. It says a lot about the type of player he is when you look at how many times he touched the ball today.”
The Warriors dominated the box score, putting up 432 yards of total offense and holding Susquehanna to 226. It was the second week in a row that Lycoming had outgained its opponent while holding the opposition to under 300 yards of total offense.
Clark wasted no time in making a statement about his offense in front of the home crowd, calling a deep pass on the first play from scrimmage. Warrior quarterback Colin Dwyer (Dalton, Pa.) connected with receiver Brad Shellenberger (Lock Haven, Pa.) for a 60-yard touchdown on the play.
“We talked about it this week and again before the game today," said Shellenberger. "The coaches were confident that it would work and Colin threw it perfect. I only had one step on the defender but he threw it where I could catch it in stride.”
Lycoming would add its second score of the game on the first play of the second quarter when Kleinfelter punched in a five-yard touchdown to put the Warriors up 14-0.
Susquehanna running back Dave Paveletz lost a fumble on the first play of the Crusader’s next series when linebacker Ben Rosa (Honesdale, Pa.) forced the ball out. Lycoming senior captain Nick Reese (Shenandoah, Pa.) recovered the fumble to give possession back to the offense, but Dwyer’s first pass after the Crusader turnover was intercepted by John Lunardi and returned 41 yards to the Warrior one-yard line. Paveletz pushed in for a one-yard touchdown run on the next play to bring the score to 14-7.
Dwyer left the game on the Warriors next series when he was hit after a 12-yard rush for a first down. He did not return, giving way to sophomore Tim Hook (Harrisburg, Pa.), who would remain in the game through the second half.
Susquehanna managed one more scoring drive in the second quarter, capped by a 22-yard field goal by Bobby Eppleman to make the score 14-10 in favor of Lycoming.
The Warriors answered on the next possession when Klenfelter broke through the middle and escaped for a 44-yard touchdown run. The extra point put Lycoming on top 21-10 at halftime.
Lycoming put up 287 yards of total offense in the first half to Susquehanna’s 116.
The teams traded possessions twice after the intermission before the Kleinfelter added his third score of the game on a rush from three yards out. Scott Erikson’s (New Providence, N.J.) extra point put Lycoming up 28-10 with just over two minutes to play in the third quarter.
The ball changed sides five times in the fourth quarter before Susquehanna scored on a 14-yard touchdown pass from Derek Pope to Justin Young. The Crusaders took advantage of a pair of 15-yard penalties by the Warriors on the final drive, including a pass interference call in the end zone that gave them a first-and-goal from the four-yard line.
Lycoming rushed for a combined 236 net yards and held the Crusaders to just 43 rushing yards. Paveletz, who entered the game averaging 102.5 yards per game, finished with 56 yards on 13 carries.
Shellenberger caught one 50-yard pass in addition to the opening touchdown to finish the game with 110 receiving yards. Mark Ryan (Philadelphia, Pa) and Adam Paulhamus (Watsontown, Pa.) each pulled down two catches in the game with Ryan picking up 36 yards and Paulhamus adding 23.
Dwyer left the game after completing five-of-nine passes for 129 yards and a touchdown. He was also intercepted twice. Hook finished the game 7-of-13 for 67 yards with one interception.
Ray Bierbach (Lake Ariel, Pa.) racked up 88 return yards with two punt returns for 37 yards and one kick return for 51 yards.
Chuck Bellitto (New Holland, Pa.) led the Warrior defense with 11 total tackles, including seven solo stops. He also had one interception, followed by a 32-yard return. Reese recorded eight tackles, including one for a loss, and recovered one fumble.
Ted Geurds (Douglassville, Pa.), picked up two of Lycoming’s four sacks on the day, for a total of 14 lost yards. T.J. Doyle (Douglassville, Pa.) was credited with one sack for a loss of seven yards and Dan Cassidy (Downington, Pa.) recorded the final sack for a loss of eight yards.
For the second week in row, the Lycoming offense converted better than 50 percent of its third down attempts, going 7-for-13 against Susquehanna.
The win improves the Warriors to 1-1 on the season while dropping the Crusaders to 1-2 overall.
Lycoming will remain home next Saturday, Sept. 27, when Bridgewater (Va.) travels to Williamsport. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at David Person Field.
Notes: Saturday’s win brings the Stagg Hat trophy back to Lycoming after Susquehanna captured it last year … the win was the fourth in row for Lycoming at David Person Field, dating back to the final three home games of 2007 … Lycoming is now 28-20-1 against the Crusaders … the win was the 314th in school history … Kleinfelter was just 24 yards shy of the single game yardage record, held by Deasey (253 yards) … Scott Erikson was 4-for-4 on extra points after having one blocked in the season opener at Ithaca … Susquehanna’s coach, Steve Briggs, was denied his 100th win and sits on a career record of 99-86 after Saturday’s game.
Quotes:
Head Coach Mike Clark
(Ref.: getting his first win)
“It means a lot to get my first win here at Lycoming. We were all motivated after the Ithaca game because we felt we could have won that game. We wanted to come out here today and prove that we could win.”
(Ref.: Josh Kleinfelter)
“He is a special back. We know that if we give him the ball and a little bit of room, great things are going to happen. It says a lot about the type of player he is when you look at how many times he touched the ball today.”
(Ref.: the offensive line)
“I can’t say enough about our offensive line and the way they played today. We really weren’t happy with the way we ran the ball at Ithaca and that was one of the main things we wanted to fix coming into today. Those guys won the battle up front all day and created big holes for Josh.”
(Ref.: looking ahead to next week)
“We’re going to look at the tape and break it down before next weekend. The offense clicked well today but we need to eliminate those turnovers. We can’t be giving the ball away in our own end of the field.”
Tailback Josh Kleinfelter
(Ref.: running the ball well today)
“We worked really hard over the last two weeks on the game plan for the running attack. Coach Clark wanted to make sure we ran the ball better today than we did at Ithaca and all the work showed on the field today.”
(Ref.: the offensive line)
“I have to give a lot of credit to the line today. They were making big holes for me for the whole game. It’s impossible to run the ball without a solid effort up front and those guys were all incredible today.”
(Ref.: setting the record for carries in a game)
“I really wasn’t thinking about any records today. I just wanted to do whatever I could to help the team get the first win of the season.
Wide Receiver Brad Shellenberger
(Ref.: the first play of the game)
“We talked about it this week and again before the game today. The coaches were confident that it would work and Colin threw it perfect. I only had one step on the defender but he threw it where I could catch it in stride.”
(Ref.: opening the game with a big play)
I think it opened the game with the momentum in our favor. We wanted to go out on that first possession at home and put points on the board. Doing it in one play really motivated the whole team.
Offensive Lineman Pat Taylor
(Ref.: the line’s performance in the running game)
“It makes our job rewarding when you have a back like Josh. We worked hard up front all day long and he kept getting through the holes and making things happen.”
(Ref.: thoughts on the game and looking forward)
“This is a big win for us. We came out of Ithaca feeling like we let one slip away and we really felt like we needed to get this first win. We’re going to stay motivated this week and prepare for a tough game against Bridgewater next week.”
