BALTIMORE, Md. --- Senior running back Jonathan Rigaud ran for 114 yards and three touchdowns on 18 carries to lead the Johns Hopkins University football team to a 49-15 Centennial Conference win over visiting Moravian College at Homewood Field Saturday.
Johns Hopkins, now 3-0 overall and 2-0 in conference action, would receive the opening kickoff of the game and go 77 yards in 15 plays to open the scoring. Junior quarterback Robbie Matey connected on a nine-yard scoring pass to junior wide receiver Daniel Wodicka, and junior kicker Richie Carbone added the extra-point for a 7-0 Johns Hopkins lead with 10:03 left in the first quarter.
The Greyhounds, who fall to 1-2 overall and 1-1 in Centennial Conference action this season, were called for three personal foul penalties on their opening drive and would punt after picking up one first down on the drive.
The Blue Jays needed just five plays to go 40 yards and extend their lead on a four-yard touchdown run from Rigaud. Carbone's PAT pushed the lead to 14-0 for Johns Hopkins with 6:15 remaining in the opening quarter.
Moravian would end up punting again on its next possession with senior Tyler Thompson connecting on a season-long punt of 53 yards to pin the Blue Jays inside their own 20-yard line.
Johns Hopkins would move down into Moravian territory before the Greyhounds forced the first turnover of the game and their sixth of the season. Matey completed a short pass to freshman wide receiver Evan Adamo. Adamo was hit by Greyhounds' freshman linebacker Brendan Downey and fumbled. Moravian freshman linebacker Chernoh Shaw recovered the ball at the Moravian 25-yard line.
The Greyhounds would move out near midfield on a first down completion from sophomore quarterback Jimmy Lahue to sophomore wide receiver Sam Boyer. The drive would stall though with Thompson coming in to punt for third time in the first half.
Moravian would get the ball right back when senior defensive back Travis King forced Rigaud to fumble. Sophomore defensive lineman Andrew Richmond would cover the ball for the Greyhounds at the Blue Jays' 31-yard line. However, a sack of Lahue forced Moravian to punt again. Thompson's punt would be downed at the one-yard line.
The Blue Jays would drive 99 yards in 15 plays to score again on a one-yard run by junior running back J.D. Abbott. Carbone pushed the Johns Hopkins' lead to 21-0 with 6:54 left before the intermission.
King would return the ensuing kickoff for Moravian, the 54th of his career, setting the school record for the Greyhounds. Lahue connected with senior wide receiver Albie Moran to move the ball past midfield for the Greyhounds. Moravian's drive would stall after a penalty, sending Thompson onto punt late in the second quarter.
On the second play of the drive, King stepped in front of a Matey pass and returned it 45 yards for a touchdown. Thompson would connect on the extra-point to cut Johns Hopkins; lead to 21-7 with 2:49 remaining before halftime. The return was King's second career interception return for a touchdown with the other coming on a 30-yard return at Juniata College during the 2010 season.
Johns Hopkins moved to midfield before the drive stalled, forcing Carbone to punt for the first time in the game with just over a minute to play in the first half. The Blue Jays would get the ball back after two plays when freshman defensive back T.J. Reeves intercepted a Lahue pass at the Moravian 48-yard line.
Rigaud capped off the four-play, 48-yard drive with a 13-yard touchdown run with 26 seconds left in the half. Carbone connected on the extra-point to push the Blue Jays' advantage to 28-7.
Moravian received the opening kickoff and moved near midfield on the first play of the half on a completion from Lahue to freshman wide receiver Jimmy McCarthy. Two plays later, Lahue was intercepted by senior defensive back Adam Schweyer.
Rigaud would score from one-yard out to finish off the 45-yard drive for the Blue Jays after the interception. Carbone connected on the PAT for a 35-7 Johns Hopkins advantage with 10:20 to play in the third quarter.
After a Moravian punt, freshman Brandon Cherry added a four-yard touchdown run for Johns Hopkins with Carbone's extra-point pushing the Blue Jays' lead to 42-7 with 7:06 left in the third quarter.
Moravian would drive down the field after a long kickoff return from McCarthy. Lahue capped off the drive with a 14-yard touchdown pass to freshman wide receiver Will McLaughlin for the Greyhounds' first offensive touchdown of the game. Thompson's extra-point sailed wide to the left to set the score at 42-13 Johns Hopkins with 4:06 left in the third quarter.
The Blue Jays moved past midfield on their next possession before Carbone would punt with 25 seconds remaining in the third quarter. Moravian was unable to move the ball and punted as well early in the fourth quarter. The teams traded punts before Johns Hopkins faced a fourth down in its own territory. Carbone was on to punt when the snap sailed over his head and rolled out of the back of the end zone for a Moravian safety, setting the score at 42-15 with 9:01 left in the contest.
The Greyhounds would start at midfield after a return from McCarthy on the free kick. However, Moravian was unable to move the ball and brought Thompson into punt.
The Blue Jays finished off the scoring on a ten-yard touchdown run by sophomore running back Jason Blades. Carbone's extra-point set the score at 49-15 with 2:22 to play.
Moravian would pick up one first down before running out the clock.
Johns Hopkins had a total of 582 yards on 98 plays with Matey completing 23-of-27 passes for 224 yards with one touchdown and one interception, and he ran for 48 yards on ten attempts. Wodicka caught six passes for 63 yards and a score while senior wide receiver Scott Cremens had four receptions for 22 yards. Sophomore quarterback Braden Anderson completed five-of-eight passes for 20 yards. Blades finished with 86 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries while Abbott had a score and 64 yards on 11 carries.
The Greyhounds' offense had 189 yards on 54 plays with Lahue completing 19-of-37 passes for 171 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. McLaughlin caught four passes for 48 yards and a touchdown while Moran grabbed three passes for 44 yards. McCarthy pulled in three receptions for 38 yards while returning five kickoffs for 80 yards. Junior tight end Chase Zimnik had three catches for 13 yards. Senior running back C.J. Billera ran for 17 yards on eight carries while sophomore running back Luke Gotzon added 11 yards on three attempts.
Senior linebacker Taylor Macoiw led the Johns Hopkins defense with seven tackles including two sacks and two tackles for loss while Schweyer had six tackles, an interception and a half a sack. Junior linebacker Nate Winek had four tackles with a half a sack while freshman defensive back Brady Watts added three tackles.
Downey paced the Moravian defense with 16 tackles, a tackle for loss and a forced fumble. Senior defensive back Rocco Del Priore added 13 tackles while junior defensive back Brandon Lesko made 11 tackles. King made eight tackles to go with his interception and forced fumble, and he contributed three kickoff returns for 55 yards and two punt returns for three yards. Sophomore linebacker Ed Bouye also had eight tackles for the Greyhounds while Richmond added seven tackles with a sack, a tackle for loss and a fumble recovery.
Thompson punted nine times for the Greyhounds in the game with a long of 53 yards and an average of 38.4 yards per punt.
Moravian is scheduled to return home to Rocco Calvo Field to host Dickinson College on Saturday, September 22nd. Kickoff for the Family Day game is set for 1:00 p.m.
