Sep 14, 2024
LEXINGTON, Va. - Scoring early and often, the Washington and Lee Unviersity football team scored the sixth-most points in program history on Saturday afternoon en route to 68-28 win over the Newport News Apprentice School at Wilson Field.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- After Wilson Axley returned the opening kickoff 48 yards to the Apprentice 42-yard line, Ty Collins connected with Josh Garcia for a 40-yard gain before Marcus Payne punched it in from two yards out, giving W&L a 7-0 advantage.
- The Builders (1-1) responded immediately, marching down the field and capping off a four-play, 68-yard drive with Grant Swanger finding Jasiah Beacham for a 34-yard touchdown pass.
- Alan Haigler ended the Builders' drive that extended into the second quarter by picking off Swanger. The Generals (1-1) capitalized on the miscue with a ten-play, 32-yard drive, which was capped by an Anthony Crawford four-yard rushing touchdown.
- The Blue and White's special teams unit came up big late in the second quarter when Will Kneisley blocked Logan Eastman's punt, which was scooped up by Marcus Payne. Payne then scampered 25 yards to put the Generals up 21-7.
- After forcing another punt, Collins found Teddy Sparrow in the end zone for a 34-yard score, putting the Blue and White ahead 27-7 with 28 seconds remaining in the half.
- With time winding down in the first half, Swanger found Beacham all alone on the Generals' 25-yard line. Beacham walked in for the 68-yard score, sending the Generals into the break with a 27-14 lead.
- The Builders opened the second half with a four-play, 65-yard drive, capped off by a five-yard touchdown pass to T.K. Petty, making it a one-score game.
- Jacob Romero put the Generals back up 34-21 after sprinting 64 yards to the end zone on the third play from scrimmage.
- Following a Builders' punt, Collins connected with Fidel Small for a 34-yard passing touchdown, giving the Generals a 41-21 lead late in the third quarter.
- After Connor O'Malley recorded his first interception of the afternoon, Michael Schoenbergcapped off a three-play, 48-yard drive with a four-yard run to put the Blue and White ahead by 27.
- On 4th-and-4, the Builders appeared to move the chains with a quick out route, but Jalen Todd delivered a massive hit, jarring the ball loose into O'Malley's hands for the team's third turnover of the game. A few plays later, Anthony Crawford punched it in 12-yards out, extending W&L's lead to 54-21.
- First-year Dominic Hahn found the end zone on the next drive, sprinting 18 yards to the endzone. Carter Shallcross added the final points of the game on the Generals' next drive, punching it in from five yards out to seal a 68-28 win for the Generals.
W&L GAME NOTES
- The Generals scored the sixth-most points in program history (68) in the win, their highest total since scoring 78 against Norfolk Naval Academy in 1919.
- The Blue and White racked up 573 yards of offense, with 465 yards on the ground and 108 through the air. W&L controlled the ball for over 30 minutes, scoring seven rushing touchdowns and two passing touchdowns. The Generals converted 5-of-12 third downs and were successful on three of their four fourth-down attempts.
- Defensively, the Generals allowed just 15 rushing yards on 18 attempts and recorded four sacks. The defense also forced three turnovers and seven punts.
APPRENTICE GAME NOTES
- Apprentice falls to 1-1 on the season, rushing for just 15 yards with one touchdown. The Builders found success through the air, throwing for 401 yards on 45 attempts.
- The Builders were penalized 17 times, resulting in a loss of 151 yards, and were forced to punt seven times.
TOP PERFORMERS
- Michael Schoenberg led all rushers with a career-high 126 yards on 10 carries and one touchdown, averaging 12.6 yards per carry. Jacob Romero rushed 11 times for 113 yards, including a 64-yard touchdown run, averaging 10.3 yards per carry.
- Grant Swanger was 18-of-33 passes for 341 yards, three touchdowns, and three interceptions. Ty Collins connected on three of his five passes for 108 yards and two touchdowns.
- Jasiah Beacham hauled in seven catches for 176 yards and two touchdowns, while Makegan Piorkowski caught seven passes for 91 yards. Josh Garcia led the Generals with one catch for 40 yards. Fidel Small and Teddy Sparrow each recorded 34 yards and a touchdown.
- Jalen Todd led all players with nine tackles, while Chase Gayness led the Builders with seven. Will Mahmud and Mac Palmer each posted a career-high two sacks in the win.
- Connor O'Malley recorded a career-high two interceptions while breaking up one pass. Alan Haigler notched his first interception of his career while breaking up one pass in the win.
UP NEXT
- The Generals will travel to the Lone Star State on Saturday, Sept. 21 for a match up with the Tigers of Trinity University (Texas) at Noon (CT) / 1 p.m. (ET).