No. 25 Football Wins MAC Opener, 41-6 at King’s

(box score)

No. 25 Widener scored 21 second-quarter points and the defense played solidly throughout in a 41-6 victory at King's in both squads Middle Atlantic Conference opener in Wilkes-Barre, PA.

King's took advantage of a short field to grab a 6-0 lead with 3:32 left in the first quarter. A 39-yard march ended when Kyle McGrath ran a sweep on the drive's seventh play from two yards to open the scoring.

The Pride (2-0, 1-0 MAC) got a huge break when a negative-two-yard punt from the Monarchs' Dan Kempa went out of bounds at the King's 30 yard line. The ensuing six-play drive ended when sophomore Anthony Davis (Upland, PA) beat his defender and caught an eight-yard touchdown pass from senior Chris Haupt (Bloomsburg, PA) for a 7-6 Widener lead three minutes into the second quarter.

Widener bumped its lead to 14-6 with 6:17 to go in the half on a crazy play that started at the King's 27 yard line. Davis caught a ball from Haupt near the sideline, broke several tackles and fumbled at the two yard line that went into the end zone. Davis did not quit on the play as he recovered the muff for the score.

The Pride then got a much-needed score to gain control for a 21-6 lead with 3:21 to play in the half. Haupt threw a quick pass to junior Terrant Morrison (Smyrna, DE), who eluded defenders and turned it into a 19-yard touchdown that concluded an efficient 51-yard drive.

Widener's defense forced King's into a three-and-out to open the second half and the offense gladly took advantage in what at this point was a solid downpour. Sophomore Couve LaFate (Wilmington, DE) took a handoff on the drive's first play and darted to the right side for a 35-yard scoring run and a 28-6 margin just two minutes into the half.

The lead ballooned to 35-6 with 3:35 to play in the third when senior Dante Pergolese (Havertown, PA) hauled in an eight-yard touchdown pass from Haupt. Junior Dylan Ditmer (Exton, PA) added a score of his own when he ripped a completion out of the arms of Matt Henry and raced 45 yards for a 41-6 Widener cushion with 11:28 remaining.

Haupt completed 15-of-29 passes for 205 yards and four touchdowns for the Pride, who ended with a 329-160 advantage in total offense. Davis closed with three catches for 60 yards and senior Dom DePasquale (Williamstown, NJ) posted four receptions.

The Pride's defense more than did its job, ending with 10 sacks and 19 tackles for a loss. Senior Chad Gravinese (Mullica Hill, NJ) had 2 1/2 sacks to go with 10 tackles, Ditmer closed with 13 tackles, sophomore John DiBiase (Mount Laurel, NJ) amassed 2 1/2 sacks and sophomore Nick Rodriguez (Haddonfield, NJ) notched two interceptions.

Tyler Hartranft completed 16-of-35 passes for 118 yards and two interceptions for the Monarchs (0-2, 0-1), who were limited to 36 rushing yards. Kempa had four catches for 62 yards and Kris Matthews closed with nine tackles.

Widener is back on the road next Saturday to visit Misericordia in the first meeting between the schools. Game time in Dallas, PA is 1:00 pm.

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