KUTZTOWN, Pa. — The East Stroudsburg football team took on No. 3 Kutztown on the road Saturday afternoon, falling 49-6 to the Golden Bears.
Both teams' offenses struggled to find a rhythm in the first quarter, but the Golden Bears offense began to match the production of its defense after the first quarter. By the end of the game, Kutztown outgained East Stroudsburg 534-293, won the turnover battle 2-0, and had four penalties for 40 yards to ESU's six for 65.
Redshirt junior QB
Harrison Susi got the start for the Warriors, throwing for 71 yards, primarily to sophomore WR
Jaylen Andrews (five receptions, 48 yards) and senior tight end
Beau Heyser (two receptions, 35 yards). Susi and freshman tailback
Ajani Walker combined nearly equally for 151 yards on the ground as well.
The Warriors got the ball to start the game, opening on a strong note as Walker broke off a 28-yard run on the first play. However, penalties quickly ended ESU's drive, negating a 34-yard rush by Susi that would have put the Warriors in the red zone.
East Stroudsburg forced a stop on its first defensive drive of the game, but after the offense punted the ball back to Kutztown, the Golden Bears opened the scoring. Judd Novak completed a pass across the middle to Noah Kracyla for a 56-yard gain, setting up a touchdown pass from Rich Paczewski to Lenniek Preston two plays later halfway through the first quarter.
As was the story of the first two drives, the Warriors were not able to convert on third down on their third drive of the game, going 0-for-3 on their attempts in the first quarter. The ESU defense did a good job of keeping the Golden Bears in their own territory, as redshirt junior P
Adam Noll placed four of his six punts inside the Kutztown 20-yard line, and recorded three punts over 50 yards.
Once the second quarter started, Kutztown began to break the game open, tripling its lead in the first six minutes. Jaedyn Stewart broke off a 35-yard rushing touchdown on the Golden Bears first possession of the frame, and then Jhaisir Harden returned an interception 44 yards on the ensuing Warriors drive.
ESU was able to convert its first third-down try of the game, with Susi connecting with Andrews for a 16-yard gain, and looked to have another 16-yard gain for a third-down conversion again, but a personal foul call backed the Warriors up from potentially the Kutztown 36-yard line to their won 33-yard line.
The Golden Bears put another two touchdown drives together before half, extending their lead to 35-0 with a minute remaining. Susi rushed his way down the field to set up a 45-yard field goal for junior K
Ty Quintois, who ended the day 2-for-2 as he'd add another make from 30 yards out later in the contest.
The Warriors weren't able to respond to the Golden Bears' 28-point outburst in the second quarter, as Kutztown carried its momentum to the second half and extended its lead out to 49-6 with a touchdown in each of the last two quarters.
GAME NOTES
- Kutztown has held a definitive advantage in head-to-head series against East Stroudsburg as of late, winning 14 of the last 15 matchups.
UP NEXT
The Warriors end their season with two home games at Eiler-Martin Stadium, starting with a night game at 6:05 p.m. Nov. 8 against Millersville, and ending with Clarion at 1:05 p.m. Nov. 15.
