OCTOBER 25, 2008
KING'S FOOTBALL TEAM HOSTING LEBANON VALLEY ON HOMECOMING
WILKES-BARRE -- The King's College football team will look to make one of the most special weekends in college football a successful one when the Monarchs host Lebanon Valley College on King's Homecoming Game Saturday at 1:30 p.m. at Betzler Fields.
Tickets are listed at $4 for adults and $2 for students. Children under age six will be admitted free.
With many former players and alumni expected to be on hand, the Monarchs will look put to rest a five game losing streak dating back to the second week of the season.
After winning their first game of the season 34-13 against Randolph-Macon, the Monarchs fell to thennationally ranked (21st) Ithaca by a 38-28 count before dropped a 22-6 verdict to unbeaten Hampden-Sydney (7-0), the defending Old Dominion Athletic Conference champion currently ranked 15th nationally by D3Football.com.
After a bye week, the Monarchs dropped a 34-19 decision to Delaware Valley College in its MAC opener on October 4. Before falling 17-3 to defending MAC champion Widener University a week later. In King's last game the Monarchs dropped a 16-0 verdict to Albright College.
Against Lebanon Valley College (4-2), King's will face a team that comes off a 20-23 overtime win over Widener and is deadlocked in a five-way first place tie in the MAC with a 2-1 conference mark
KING'S FOOTBALL ON THE AIR:
The game will be web cast live in the Internet by WRKC, 88.5 FM. The game can be accessed by going to the WRKC LIVE link at the following page: http://www.kings.edu/IITS/index.htm
The game will also be televised on Service Electric Cable on Channel 19 locally to any Service Electric Cable subscriber. The game can also be viewed on the WKCTV LIVE link at the following page: http://www.kings.edu/IITS/index.htm
The live statistical and play-by-play feed will be available on the Internet at the following link:
ABOUT THE GAME:
The game stands as Homecoming at King's, the 16th Homecoming football game for the Monarchs. A pre-game ceremony will be held at 1:15 p.m. marking the official naming of King's new multi-purpose, synthetic turf field.
ABOUT THE SERIES:
This is the 10th all-time meeting between the programs with King's holding a 6-3 advantage. The Flying Dutchmen posted a 13-9 victory last season. The last time the teams met at King's, the Monarchs registered a 10-0 victory. King's has won four of the last five meetings between the teams.
THE COACHES:
Monarch mentor Rich Mannello, the longest tenured head coach in the MAC, is in his 16th year at King's and owns a current record of 65-95-1 with the Monarchs, including five post-season playoff appearances since 2000, including the 2002 MAC title. Lebanon Valley is coached by Jim Monos who is in his second term at LVC and his 14th overall year with the program. He sports a 62-91-2 record with the Dutchmen.
LAST WEEK:
A week ago, King's dropped its fifth straight game with a 16-0 loss at Albright College. Lebanon Valley used overtime to secure a 23-20 home win over Widener.
KING'S ON OFFENSE: I-FORMATION
King's is averaging 279.0 yards of total offense per-game, including 82.0 rushing yards and 197.0
passing yards. Sophomore quarterback Olayinka Soda leads the team with 211.8 yards of total offense per-game. Soda has completed 58.1 (108-186) percent of his passes for 1,182 yards with six touchdowns and nine interceptions this season. Junior wide receiver Mike Verbitski tops the receivers with 28 catches for 456 yards and five touchdowns. Sophomore split end Bob Lane has 19 receptions for 203 yards while sophomore receiver Rick Ritter checks in with 11 catches for 165 yards. Freshman receiver Rodney Blango chips in with 10 catches for 51 yards. King's banged up backfield will see Richard Maerten getting his first career start at tailback. Maerten has rushed for 50 yards on 20 carries.
LEBANON VALLEY ON OFFENSE: MULTIPLE
The Lebanon Valley offense enters the game averaging 380.7 yards of total offense per-game, including 193.8 rushing yards and 186.8 passing yards. Running the Lebanon Valley offence is sophomore quarterback Caleb Fick who has completed 50.3 (73-145) percent of his passes for 1,103 yards with eight touchdowns and four interceptions. The Flying Dutchmen are expected to play without their top performer, junior tailback Charlie Parker, who leads the MAC in rushing with 814 yards. Parker was injured last week against Widener and was not expected to play at mid-week. Freshman Ben Guiles, who has 180 yards on 45 carries, is expected to get the start. Sophomore Cruz Mannherz, who adds 125 yards on 19 carries, will provide relief. The duo combined for 160 yards off the bench last week against Widener. Junior split end Matt Donley owns a team-high 32 receptions for 435 yards and three touchdowns. Fellow junior wde receiver Joe Brennan follows with 24 catches for 422 yards with four touchdowns.
KING'S ON DEFENSE: MULTIPLE
King's defense has yielded 347.3 yards of total offense per-game, including 174.2 rushing yards and 172.5 passing yards each contest. Senior linebacker Matt Rhodes tops the team with 48 total tackles, including 6.0 tackles for loss. Senior linebacker Tom Tulaney follows with 43 tackles, one interception, and one fumble recovery. Senior safety Shane McNamara adds 39 tackles with one interception and has broken up five passes. Sophomore defensive tackle Alex Watty has made 33 tackles with 5.0 tackles for loss. Sophomore defensive end Ryan Nelson posts 33 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss. Junior cornerback Brian Mitros contributes with 23 tackles while senior defensive end Mike Lovett has tallied 21 tackles with 4.0 sacks and 5.5 tackles for loss. Sophomore defensive tackle Craig Geibert and sophomore cornerback Edwyn Edwards chip in with 20 and 19 tackles respectively.
LEBANON VALLEY ON DEFENSE: 3-4 MULTIPLE
The Dutchmen defense is allowing 302.7 yards of total offense per-game, including 172.2 yards through the air and 130.5 yards on the ground. Senior linebacker Brian Cottone tops the unit with 47 stops with 4.5 tackles for loss. Senior safety Andrew Shambach follows with 41 tackles and 3.0 behind the line of scrimmage. Junior linebacker Will Keylor adds 34 tackles with 3.5 tackles for loss. Sophomore defensive end Zach Bleiler has tallied 28 tackles with 6.0 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. Sophomore safety Dana Eichelberger contributes with 27 tackles and a team-high three interceptions. Junior linebacker Bruno Iozzo has registered 26 tackles while junior linebacker Jeff Ochoa posts 24 tackles. Senior cornerback Bill Dixon and sophomore linebacker Alex Gilchrist aid the Flying Dutchmen defense with 19 tackles apiece. Senior nose tackle Anthony Pezzella chips in with 15 tackles and 2.0 sacks.
NEXT GAME:
The Monarchs will travel to meet cross town rival Wilkes University in the annual Mayor's Cup Game at 1:00 p.m. at Ralston Field.
