SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – For the second consecutive week, the East Stroudsburg University defense stepped up late, forcing and recovering a Shippensburg fumble in the red zone to hang on to defeat the Raiders, 23-16, on Saturday afternoon at Seth Grove Stadium.
The Warriors (4-5, 3-3 PSAC East) move into a tied in third place in the PSAC East Division with Millersville and West Chester, while the Raiders (3-6, 2-4 PSAC East) fall to a tie in seventh place with Bloomsburg with the loss.
Notables
- Offensively, Jake Cirillo completed 14-31 passes for 158 yards. He also totaled 28 rushing yards and his third rushing touchdown of the season. The touchdown was the 10th rushing touchdown of his career and he is now tied with current Penn State Head Coach James Franklin for second among ESU quarterbacks.
- Tahir Mill paced the tailbacks with 42 yards rushing a touchdown. Tyriq Lewis added 34 yards on 13 carries.
- For the third time this season, the Warriors had 10-plus players with a reception. Benny Pembleton led the way with 31 yards on two receptions. Evan Roche had the longest reception of the day, with a 30-yd gain.
- Duquesne transfer Jahan Worth recorded 12 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss, while Sergei Felizor added nine tackles and a forced fumble. Tyler Watson added seven tackles, while Jacob Keane totaled six tackles.
- Deshawn McCarthy and Noah Hambrick also forced fumbles. Isaiah Reigel Hambrick and Watson each were credited with a fumble recovery.
- Devin Bartholomew went 3-5 on field goals, with misses from 50 and 44 yards but converted attempts from 25, 42 and 21 yards. He made both of his extra-point tries to extend the Warrior streak to 96 and has made all 54 attempts in his collegiate career.
- The Warriors held Ship to just 50 rushing yards on 34 attempts (1.5 yards per rush).
- ESU held a slim 259-251 edge in total offense.
- The Warriors committed just three penalties for 22 yards.
- The Warriors held Shippensburg to convert just three 3rd-down conversions on 12 attempts.
- ESU's win is the first over Raiders since 2014, snapping a six-game losing skid.
- It's the second consecutive week that ESU sealed a win with its defense nearing the goal line, with the Warriors using a goal-line stand to hold off a Bloomsburg comeback on Oct. 22.
How It Happened
- As mentioned, ESU struck for the first 17 points of the contest, which all occurred in the second quarter. ESU punted on its first possession, and missed a field goal on its second opportunity before finding the end zone with Cirillo finding the end zone after an option keeper.
- The Raiders also missed a field goal opportunity on its second drive. McCarthy tallied the sack-fumble to setup Tahir Mills with his fourth rushing touchdown of the season from a yard out.
- The squads traded punts before a long field goal attempt from Bartholomew went wide. The Warrior defense continued to thrive, forcing its fifth punt of the first half. ESU was able to tack on three points with a 25-yd field goal from Bartholomew with 32 seconds remaining.
- Holding the 17-point halftime lead, the Raiders were able to gain momentum out of the locker room with its first touchdown drive. The Raiders drove down the field with a nine-play 65-yd drive that resulted in a Xavier Roman 7-yd reception touchdown from Evan Falco.
- The next five drives of the contests resulted in punts, before the Raiders were able to find the end zone for the second time with a Khalid Dorsey seven-yd rushing touchdown. The Raiders missed the extra-point, as now ESU led by just four at 17-13 with 1L52 left in the third quarter.
- On ESU's second play of the fourth quarter, Ship's Khi'on Smith forced a fumble from Clifford Brinkley, as the Raiders took over possession near midfield. After five plays, the Raiders settled for a 31-yd field goal, to make it a one-point game at 17-16.
- After a big 41-yd return from Justin Cook, ESU was setup in great field positon at its 41-yd line. Cirillo found John Siggins on 3rd and 4 with an 11-yd gain to move the sticks, as ESU responded with a 42-yd field goal from Bartholomew to extend the lead back to four points at 20-16.
- Noah Hambrick forced a huge fumble on the ensuing kickoff. As Bartholomew added three more points with a 21-yd field goal to lengthen the advantage back to seven points at 23-16.
- The Raiders took over possession with 2:22 left down seven and picked up three first downs. On the ESU 10-yd line, Ship quarterback Evan Falco rushed for four yards before a forced fumble by Jake Keane was recovered by Deshawn McCarthy on ESU's own six-yd line. The play was pivotal, as Shippensburg had no timeouts remaining.
- In victory formation, the Warriors kneeled the ball twice to escape Seth Grove Stadium with the win.
Up Next
- ESU will face nationally-ranked and undefeated Shepherd on Saturday at Eiler-Martin Stadium. The Senior Day matchup on the final home game of the 2022 season is set to kickoff at 1:05 p.m.
