CHESTER, Pa. –
Graham Jespersen threw for a career-high 317 yards and the Widener University football team racked up nearly 500 yards of total offense as the Pride downed the Lebanon Valley Dutchmen 28-20 in a Middle Atlantic Conference clash at Leslie C. Quick Jr. Stadium on Saturday afternoon. With the win, Widener is now 3-2 overall and 3-1 in the MAC.
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FIRST QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS
- The Pride opened the scoring in the waning minutes of the quarter as Jespersen connected with D'Andre Sapp for a 21-yard touchdown pass at the 3:27 mark. The score completed a 14 play, 82-yard drive that took up 5:57.
- Jespersen came out of the gates firing, completing 7-of-11 attempts in the frame for 79 yards.
- Four different receivers caught passes in the frame. Sapp and James Gillespie hauled in two each while Montrell Hicks-Taylor and Joey Bristow each had one grab.
SECOND QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS
- The period was highlighted by one of the top plays of the season for Widener as Gillespie made a one-handed catch, reaching back for a first down early in the stanza.
- Lebanon Valley and the Pride traded scores in the frame. The Dutchmen got the scoring started with a field goal from Marcus Brown to cut the lead to 7-3.
- Gillespie helped extend the Widener lead, catching a five yard TD pass from Jespersen, making it 14-3.
- LVC scored with 33 seconds remaining in the half on a Tim Pirrone wildcat run to pull to four at the break.
- Jespersen went 8-for-9 in the quarter and finished the half with 161 yards passing.
- Vince Char had a strong defensive frame with five tackles including 2.5 TFL and 1.5 sacks.
THIRD QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS
- Widener used the long ball for the first score of the second half as Jespersen went up top to Hicks-Taylor who caught the ball at the Dutchmen 20 and then took it the rest of the way himself, finishing off a 52-yard score.
- Lebanon Valley would not go away, scoring on a 23-yard pass from Tyler Sterner to Pirrone, slicing the lead to 21-17.
- Jespersen continued to impress, completing 5-of-6 passes for 138 yards.
FOURTH QUARTER NOTES
- Chris Randle delivered the final points for the Blue and Gold with a 17-yard run early in the period to make it 28-17.
- Widener ran for 76 yards in the period before a pair of late kneel downs. The fourth quarter total accounted for half of the team's rushing total in the contest.
- Randle rushed for 35 yards in the stanza while Rob Ennis, Jr. went off for 31.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Jespersen completed 22-of-29 passes for 317 yards and three touchdowns.
- Vince Char collected a career-high 15 tackles in the game including 3.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks.
- Caskey Kerschner had 11 tackles and a sack, giving him at least one QB takedown in all five games.
- Widener was 6-for-10 on third downs in the game and committed just two penalties in the contest.
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UP NEXT
Widener heads on the road to face Wilkes in a Middle Atlantic Conference contest on Saturday, Oct. 7. Kickoff from Schmidt Stadium is slated for 1:00 p.m.
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