Hounds Hold Off Dickinson For Homecoming Win at Rocco Calvo Field

BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- The Moravian University football squad jumped out to a 21-0 lead in the second quarter and held on to defeat Dickinson College, 21-14, in Centennial Conference action on Homecoming at Rocco Calvo Field Saturday afternoon. 

How It Happened

• The Greyhounds received the opening kickoff and drove down into field goal range. Junior Trevor Yacuboski came on to attempt a 41-yard field goal, but it was blocked
• The Red Devils moved into the red zone on their first possession and would attempt a 35-yard field goal that senior linebacker Nicholas Azpeitia blocked the kick to give the ball back to the Blue and Grey
• Moravian needed just three plays to get on the scoreboard on their second drive. Sophomore running back Nate Boyle had runs of 11 and 10 yards before senior quarterback Christopher Mills found senior wide receiver Nick Petros behind the Dickinson defense for a 59-yard touchdown catch and run. Yacuboski added the extra-point as the Greyhounds took a 7-0 lead with 7:10 left in the first quarter
• After forcing the Red Devils to punt, Moravian moved into the red zone before Mills had a tipped pass intercepted at the two-yard line
• Just two plays later, the Blue and Grey got the ball back as senior linebacker Noah Breidinger intercepted a pass and returned it to the Dickinson 22-yard line
• On the next play, Mills found Petros with a 22-yard touchdown pass. The score was Petros' school-record 19th career touchdown pass while it was Mills' 30th career touchdown pass. Yacuboski made the extra-point to extend the Moravian lead to 14-0 with 13:02 left in the second quarter
• The Greyhounds' defense forced Dickinson to turn the ball over on downs on its next possession
• Moravian needed seven plays to find the end zone again as Boyle ran in from four yards out to finish off the drive. Yacuboski's extra-point made it a 21-0 game with 7:53 before the intermission
• Dickinson looked like it was ready to find the end zone on its next drive, but senior linebacker Romello Walters forced a fumble at the one-yard line and senior Renard Nicholson recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchback
• The first half would end with Moravian leading 21-0
• The Red Devils had the ball first in the second half and needed just five plays to go 80 yards and get on the scoreboard on a 22-yard touchdown pass, cutting the Greyhounds' lead to 21-7
• Each team punted once before Moravian turned the ball over on downs on the first play of the fourth quarter
• Dickinson responded to the defensive stand by scoring on the next drive to make it 21-14 with 12:07 remaining
• The Hounds had a quick three-and-punt drive, and a short punt caused the Red Devils to get the ball near midfield. Dickinson drove into the red zone before senior defensive back Jackson Buskirk forced a fumble that Walters scooped up
• The Blue and Grey would end up punting but a play from freshman wide receiver Jordan Lewis kept Petros' punt from being a touchback and leaving the Red Devils with a longer field
• Dickinson would drive into Moravian territory before the Greyhounds' defense forced the Red Devils to turn the ball over on downs. The Hounds needed just one kneel down to seal the win

Inside the Numbers

• Moravian had a slight advantage in overall yardage at 383 to 378
• Mills completed 17-of-26 passes for 258 yards with two touchdowns and one interception, and he also had four rushing yards
• Petros caught six passes for 105 yards, his ninth career 100-yard game with three of them against Dickinson, and Petros is now the all-time record holder in receiving touchdowns with 19 to go with 152 receptions (second to Jalen Snyder-Scipio's school mark of 159) and 2,142 yards (second all-time)
• Boyle finished with 114 rushing yards and a touchdown on 25 carries, his first career 100-yard game, and he also caught five passes for 44 yards
• Sophomore wide receiver Tim Garlick caught two passes for 69 yards while junior wide receiver Nick Basenese had one catch for 24 yards
• Lewis caught one pass for eight yards while junior tight end Chris Carpini had one reception for seven yards and senior running back Carrington Smith had one catch for a yard and four rushing attempts for nine yards
• Buskirk led the Moravian defense with ten tackles to go with his forced fumble and a pass break-up while freshman defensive back Chad Newhard had seven tackles with a sack
• Senior defensive back Justin McRae also contributed seven stops while junior defensive lineman Javi Espinal-Katz made five tackles with one and a half for loss and two pass break-ups
• Walter registered five tackles with his forced fumble and fumble recovery, and Walters also returned three kickoffs for 65 yards
• Junior linebacker Jack Gawlik contributed three tackles with a half a tackle for loss while senior defensive lineman Brady Hornbaker had three stops with one and a half for loss. Breidinger had his interception and two passes defended and two tackles before leaving with an injury 

Up Next for the Greyhounds

• Saturday, October 23 vs. Ursinus College, 1:00 p.m.
• Saturday, October 30 at McDaniel College, 1:00 p.m.