PRINCE ATHLETIC COMPLEX – University of Rochester football pitched its second shutout of the year, scoring 21 second-half points to defeat the St. Lawrence University Saints, 21-0, on Saturday at Edwin Fauver Stadium.
Neither side could get much going in the first half, combining for just over 100 yards in each of the first and second quarters, and just 243 total yards in the first half. After St. Lawrence won the toss and deferred, Yellowjackets saw their opening drive sputter just past their own 40-yard line, while the Saints gained just 35 yards on seven plays on their opening possession.
Daniel Lawther completed passes of 13 and 11 yards on St. Lawrence's opening possession, but on fourth-and-three from the Rochester 33-yard line, Happy Chane and Nyme Hussain stopped Benjamin Chapman one-yard shy of the first-down marker, forcing a turnover on downs.
UR then put together the makings of a scoring drive, highlighted by Aidan Papantonis' 25-yard reception from Ryan Rose to move the 'Jackets into the red zone. But a loss of one on second down and incomplete pass on third brought out the field goal team, and Jordan Laudani's 28-yard attempt sailed wide left, keeping Rochester and St. Lawrence scoreless midway through the first.
Four punts later, the Saints offense got going with a little over six-and-a-half minutes to play in the second. Lawther found Shea Goodwin over the middle for a gain of 30 yards, putting St. Lawrence inside UR territory, while Lawther's two-yard rush on fourth-and-one from just outside the red zone setup the Saints with first-and-10 on the Yellowjackets' 21.
But on the very next play, Jordy Tawa intercepted Lawther's pass in the end zone, preventing the Saints from putting any points on the board. The Yellowjackets then drove inside St. Lawrence territory once again, but a bad snap pushed UR out of field goal range, and Alex Wing's 38-yard punt pinned SLU inside their own 10 with less than a minute to play in the first half.
UR and St. Lawrence headed into the locker room without a point on the board, but just four plays into the second half, Rochester's defense would change that.
On St. Lawrence's first possession of the second half, Luke Herter intercepted Lawther's pass over the middle and returned it 37 yards for a score, giving Rochester a 7-0 lead.
Herter's pick-six was exactly what the Yellowjackets' needed to jumpstart their offense, as after SLU punted on their next possession, UR gained 50 yards on its next drive, with Rose again hitting Aidan Papantonis over the middle for a big gain.
But on third-and-two from the SLU 11-yard line, Rose was pressured and threw an interception to Brennan Twombly in the end zone, giving the ball right back to the Saints.
Rochester's defense though, would pick Rose up, with Joe DeBonis' four-yard sack, one of five on the day for the Yellowjackets, ended SLU's seven-play, 21-yard drive and forced another Sam Arbaugh punt.
And on this drive, the 'Jackets would finally break through for a score. Creighton Wise got things started with a 12-yard run on first-and-10 from the 26-yard line, and Aidan Papantonis followed with a 43-yard gain to put the 'Jackets in the red zone.
Another two-yard rush from Wise setup second-and-eight from the 17, where Daniel Papantonis scampered 17 yards for the score, putting the 'Jackets up 14-0 after Laudani connected on the extra point.
Up 14-0, Rochester's defense quickly forced a three-and-out, and UR went back to work on offense, with Jake Adelmann sending the 'Jackets to the fourth quarter with a 17-yard run to midfield. But the nine-play, 37-yard drive stalled out at the SLU 31-yard line after the Saints stopped Adelmann on fourth-and-two.
The Saints took over with 10:41 left, and quickly moved into Rochester territory with completions of 14 yards to Cole Salyards and 35 yards to Nicholas Huhtala. Lawther then rushed up the middle for nine yards, and Sean Miles coverted a third-and-one with a gain of one, setting St. Lawrence up just outside the UR 10-yard line.
But once again, the Yellowjacket defense came through with a stop, forcing a trio of incompletions, including a fourth-down pass by Lawther broken up by Tawa in the end zone to keep St. Lawrence off the board and give the ball back to Rochester's offense.
Six plays later, Rochester added to its lead, as Adelmann punched it in from one-yard out after Daniel Papantonis' 63-yard rush brought the 'Jackets down to the goal line.
Adelmann's touchdown, along with Laudani's extra point, made it a 21-0 game, and after a pair of sacks on St. Lawrence's ensuing possession forced a turnover on downs, the 'Jackets got the ball back with 2:38 to play, with a chance to run out the clock on the victory.
And while a fumble gave the Saints the ball right back, the Yellowjackets' defense would bend but not break, forcing a pair of incompletions and picking up another sack once the Saints got down to the red zone to keep St. Lawrence off the scoreboard and finish off the shutout, UR's second of the year.
With the win, the Yellowjackets move to 6-1 (2-1 Liberty League) on the year, while the Saints fall to 2-5 (1-3 LL). The 6-1 record marks Rochester's best start since 1992, while UR's two shutouts are its most in a single season since 1989.
Offensively, Rose completed 10 of his 16 attempts for 108 yards, while Aidan Papantonis caught three receptions for a team-high 58 yards, and Trey Johnson caught a team-high six passes for 41 yards.
On the ground, Daniel Papantonis rushed 24 times for 194 yards and a score, Aidan Papantonis carried the ball three times for 48 yards, and Adelmann toted the rock four times for 25 yards and a TD.
Defensively, Herter tallied a team-high 12 tackles, in addition to his pick-six and pass breakup, Happy Chane totaled 10 tackles and DeBonis notched eight tackles and a team-high two sacks.
Rochester outgained St. Lawrence, 370-274 overall, and 262-33 on the ground.
The Yellowjacket next wrap up their home slate with a matchup against Buffalo State University on Saturday, Nov. 2 at 12:00 p.m.
21-Point Second-Half Helps UR Down St. Lawrence
/seasons/2024/boxscores/20241026_gcm9.xml
2024
St. Lawrence
0
Rochester
21
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Lawrence (2-5) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rochester (6-1) | 0 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 21 |
Oct 26, 2024