Lebanon Valley 20, Lycoming 17
LVC Offense
QB Sterner, RB Salerno, FB Lysczek, WR Cottle, WR Pirrone, TE Berberick, LT Amarose, LG Stover, C Dickmyer, RG Werner, RT Van Horn
LVC Defense
DE Maguire, DT Conlon, DT Donlan, DE Zimmerman, LB Garner, LB Trujillo, LB Schumacher, CB Moser, S Bruso, S Lutz, CB Gilger
Lyco Offense
QB Williams, RB Dressler, WR Zollicoffer, WR Costello, WR Mulvhill, TE Wagner, LT Botts, LG Sipps, C Stubbs, RG Newton, RT Buffington
Lyco Defense
DE Hines, DT Curtis, DT Stemrich, DE Romanofsky, LB Pawlikowski, LB Kovach, LB Robbins, CB Boyd, S Pinzka, S Ward, CB Davis
How It Happened
Lebanon Valley used a bruising run game and a defense that made timely plays to hold off Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) rival Lycoming on Saturday afternoon, Nov. 4. The Flying Dutchmen (5-4, 5-3 MAC) claimed a 20-17 victory on Senior Day at Arnold Field to keep their postseason chances alive.
Clinging to a three-point lead with less than a minute remaining, the defense was called upon to seal the win and the unit answered the call when linebacker
Tim Schumacher forced a third-down fumble on Lyco's side of midfield. The Warriors (4-5, 4-4 MAC) recovered the loose ball but gave up precious field position and quarterback Chase Williams' fourth-down attempt was dropped near midfield with eight seconds left, sealing the victory for LVC.
Leading 20-10, the Dutchmen seemed to be in control when they had Lycoming pinned at its own one-yard line following a beautiful punt by
Adam Domovich with just 3:39 remaining. The Warriors turned things around with one big play, however, when Williams connected with wideout Nick Costello for a 99-yard catch and run down the Lyco sideline.
Quarterback
Tyler Sterner gave Lebanon Valley its largest lead of the game when he ran a draw play to perfection and crossed the goal line from four yards out midway through the fourth quarter. The touchdown run capped an eight-play, 61-yard drive with 8:14 left to play following a key, 23-yard end-around run by
Tim Pirrone to begin the march.
Kicker
Marcus Brown converted the second of his two field goals on the day when he buried a 30 yarder to finish off LVC's opening possession of the second half; an impressive drive that lasted 15 plays and went 62 yards in 7:13. The Warriors cut the deficit to 13-10 early in the fourth quarter when Jamie Fisher converted an attempt from 39 yards away with 12:49 remaining.
After forcing the visitors to go three and out on their opening possession, LVC started the scoring with a 12-play, 74-yard touchdown drive that culminated with a 12-yard strike from Sterner to Pirrone at the 7:23 mark of the first quarter.
Lycoming tied it up early in the second quarter when running back Sam Dressler finished off an eight-play, 51-yard scoring march with a four-yard touchdown scamper at the 12:26 mark. A missed field goal by the Warriors with 4:45 left before halftime allowed the Dutchmen to move into Lyco territory, convert a 24-yard field goal, and take a slim 10-7 lead into the break.
It Was Over When…
Holding a 10-point lead, LVC looked to be in complete control when punter
Adam Domovich pinned the Warriors at their own one-yard line with less than four minutes to play. One 99-yard touchdown pass later and we had ourselves a nail biter. After forcing a Lebanon Valley punt, Lyco got the ball back with 48 ticks left. The Warriors moved out to their 40-yard line in four plays and faced a 3rd-and-3. Chase Williams connected with Nick Costello on a shallow crossing route but
Tim Schumacher knocked the ball free and when the offense recovered, it faced a 4th-and-7 with less than 20 seconds left. Williams tried to hit a receiver near midfield but the pass was dropped.
Inside the Numbers
- The Dutchmen racked up 404 yard of total offense, while the defense held Lycoming to 311 total yards.
- Lebanon Valley rushed for an impressive 266 yards on 55 carries.
- LVC won the turnover battle 2-1. Linebacker
Tim Schumacher forced a pair of fumbles, safety
Anthony Jenkins recovered one, and safety
Zachary Adams came away with the game's only interception.
- Running back
Jon Jones racked up 116 yards on 24 attempts.
- Quarterback
Tyler Sterner finished 9-17 for 119 yards and a touchdown.
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Tim Pirrone rushed eight times for 84 yards (10.5 yards per carry) and added a touchdown reception.
-
Gary Wise was the team's leading receiver with three catches for 52 yards.
- Wide receiver
Tyler Cottle pulled in a pair of catches for 39 yards.
- Linebacker
Tommy Garner made a team-high eight tackles for LVC. He added a sack, a pass breakup, and one quarterback hurry.
- Schumacher added seven stops, including one for loss.
- Lycoming's Mike Ward made a game-high 15 tackles.
- Cornerback
Spencer Moser had two pass breakups on the day.
- Saturday's game was the seventh in a row in the LVC-Lyco series that was decided by one score.
Playoff Picture
With the win, LVC now owns sole possession of fourth place in the MAC standings thanks to a victory over Stevenson earlier this fall. The Dutchmen can clinch third place and a spot in the third annual Centennial-MAC Bowl Series with a victory at Albright next weekend.
Who's Next?
The Dutchmen wrap up the regular season when they travel to Albright for the 97th meeting all-time between the longtime rivals on Saturday afternoon, Nov. 11.
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