LANCASTER, Pa. – Ethan Heisey caught a 55-yard touchdown pass from
Owen Strouse in the second quarter as the Lebanon Valley football team matched Franklin & Marshall through much of the first half before the Diplomats used a pair of second-half scoring drives to pull away for a 31-7 victory in Friday night's season opener at Shadek Stadium in Lancaster.
After Franklin & Marshall opened the scoring on a 15-play, 95-yard drive that took up much of the first quarter, the Dutchmen answered with several strong offensive possessions.
Deakon Schaeffer ignited one drive with a 23-yard run that was followed by a personal foul penalty that moved LVC into Diplomats territory. The Dutchmen drove the ball down to the F&M 26 before a 43-yard field goal attempt came up short.
The biggest swing of the first half came with 3:02 remaining before halftime when
Bradley Weder intercepted a Franklin & Marshall pass at the LVC 45-yard line. On the very next play, Strouse found Heisey streaking over the middle for a 55-yard touchdown pass, tying the game at 7-7 with 2:56 left in the half. The Diplomats managed a 34-yard field goal in the closing seconds to take a 10-7 lead into intermission.
Franklin & Marshall increased its advantage on its opening drive of the second half, marching 75 yards in 10 plays before Na'Rome Rayborn connected with Hudson Zawadzkas for an eight-yard touchdown pass and a 17-7 lead. The Dutchmen looked to answer midway through the third quarter as a 20-yard completion from Strouse to
Blake Weaver converted a third-and-10 and moved LVC near midfield. However, the Diplomats stopped the Dutchmen on the next three plays to force a punt. Franklin & Marshall put together another time-consuming drive that crossed into the fourth quarter. The Dutchmen stiffened near the goal line and forced a fourth down inside the red zone, but the Diplomats converted and scored on an 11-yard touchdown run by Anthony Valdez to make it 24-7 with 13:22 remaining.
LVC continued battling and pieced together one of its best drives of the second half on the ensuing possession. Strouse connected with Heisey for 10 yards and
Noah Hoff for 23 more to move the Dutchmen into Franklin & Marshall territory, but the drive stalled near midfield. The Diplomats added their final touchdown with 6:32 remaining, capping a 79-yard drive highlighted by several chunk runs before Rayborn found Zawadzkas for a five-yard score. Lebanon Valley continued to push offensively in the closing minutes. Strouse completed passes to Heisey and
Makih Cooper and added a 10-yard scramble to move the Dutchmen across midfield before a late interception ended the threat.
Inside the Box
- Heisey was the offensive star for the Dutchmen, hauling in six receptions for 119 yards and a touchdown. He accounted for more than 70% of Lebanon Valley's receiving yards on the night.
- Strouse threw for 167 yards and a touchdown while adding 28 rushing yards. He connected with four different receivers and engineered several drives into Franklin & Marshall territory, including the game-tying touchdown strike to Heisey.
- Schaeffer paced the ground game with 40 rushing yards on nine carries, averaging 4.4 yards per attempt. His longest run of the night went for 23 yards and helped set up an early scoring opportunity for the Dutchmen.
- Weder delivered one of the biggest defensive plays of the game, intercepting a Franklin & Marshall pass late in the second quarter. The takeaway immediately led to LVC's touchdown on the next play and helped swing momentum back toward the Dutchmen before halftime.
- J.D. McCallion had 11 tackles and two pass breakups while Jacob Karkoska added 11 tackles with 2.0 tackles for loss on the defensive end. Owen Chernich had 10 tackles while Brandon Choi made nine tackles.
Up Next
LVC will begin Middle Atlantic Conference play next Saturday, September 12, with the home opener at Arnold Field against Delaware Valley University. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. against the Aggies.
Stay Connected
Be sure to follow @lvcathletics on
Instagram,
X, and
Facebook for the most in-depth coverage of LVC Athletics.
