ITHACA FOOTBALL HOLDS OFF KINGS RALLY FOR 38-28 WIN

WILKES-BARRE – Senior tight end Brian Weverbergh caught nine passes for 121 yards and two touchdowns and Ithaca College held off a late King's College rally as the visiting Bombers posted a 38-28 non-conference victory Saturday at Robert L. Betzler Fields.

With the win, Ithaca, ranked 21st nationally in the latest D3Football.com poll, improved to 2-0 on the year while King's slipped to 1-1.

King's would strike first on the third possession of the game when the Monarchs recovered a fumbled punt at the Bomber nine yard-line. On the third play of the possession, quarterback Olayinka Soda found Mike Verbitski with a nine-yard scoring toss to put the Monarchs on the board. Andrew DeRito added the conversion kick as King's took a 7-0 lead with 8:46 remaining in he first quarter.

Ithaca would respond in the second quarter when the Bombers put together a seven-play, 80-yard drive, capped by a 28-yard pass from Dan Juvan to Weverbergh. Andrew Rogowski's point after would knot the score at 7-7 with 5:50 remaining in the opening half.

Following a King's punt, the Bombers would put together another 80-yard drive lasting nine plays. A 25-yard pass from Juvan to Zach Connett, followed by a 23-yard hookup to Thomas Vossler would give Ithaca possession at the King's 18. The Bombers would move to the Monarch five-yard line where Juvan and Weverbergh would hook up on their second scoring play of the day. Rogowski made good on the extra-point try as Ithaca took a 14-7 lead with 0:46 left in the second period.

On the ensuing kickoff Ithaca's Ryan Clarke forced a fumble by Matt Spencer and Bomber teammate Tom Eschen recovered for Ithaca at the King's 31. The Bombers would move to the Monarch one-yard line before Rogowski booted an 18-yard field goal with 0:01 on the clock as Ithaca took a 17-7 lead into the halftime break.

In the third quarter, Ithaca would assume possession on its own 35-yard line and once again began to drive downfield. The Bombers used six plays to advance to the Monarch 33. On the next play, tailback Thomas Bergerstock rumbled off right tackle and ran virtually untouched into the end zone. Rogowski's extra-point kick caromed off the right upright and barley cleared the cross bar but the successful conversion upped the Bomber lead to 24-7 with 11:51 remaining in the third quarter.

Ithaca would force another Monarch punt and took over at its own 40. The Bombers would move to the King's 19 following a 10-yard pass from Juvan to Weverbergh. Two plays later Juvan found Dan Ruffrage for a 19-yard touchdown pass to give Ithaca a 31-7 lead with 6:18 left in the third quarter.

King's, however, refused to die and strung together a nine-play, 58-yard drive capped by a one-yard run by Jeramia Jones. Jason Cheir blocked DeRito's conversion as King's drew to within 31-13 with 1:38 left in the third period.

Midway through the fourth quarter, King's safety Matt Carroll would intercept a Juvan pass, giving the Monarchs possession at midfield. An 11-yard completion to Verbitski and a 15-yard pass interference call on the Bombers moved the ball to the Ithaca12. Two plays later, Soda and Verbitski would connect again on an 11-yard touchdown pass. Verbitski would then haul in the two-point conversion to bring the Monarchs to within 31-21 with 4:26 left in the contest.

King's would then regain possession when Justin Zlotek recovered the ensuing onsides kick with 4:22 left. A 32-yard completion to Verbitski and a six-yard scramble by Soda advanced the ball to the Bomber 17-yard line. Two plays later, Soda found Verbitski for their third scoring pass of the day with 3:11 left. DeRito added the extra-point kick, leaving the Bombers clinging to a 31-28 lead.

The Monarchs would force an Ithaca punt and assumed possession at its own 26 with 0:52 left. On the first play of the drive, Soda was pressured and was flagged for an intentional grounding penalty, moving the ball back to the King's 19. On the next play, Andy Lonsky would seal the win for the Bombers when he intercepted a Soda pass and raced 36-yards down the right sideline to find the end zone. Rogowski's point-after with 0:36 left would account for the final point of the game as the Bombers held on for an exciting 38-28 victory.

Ithaca outgained King's 440-to-305 yards in total offense. Juvan completed 19-of-33 passes for 304 yards and three touchdowns. Bergerstock rushed for 138 yards on 27 carries. Vossler added three catches for 78 yards while Ruffrage also had three receptions for 51 yards.

For King's, Soda completed 23-of-37 yards for 237 yards and a career-high three touchdowns but also tossed three interceptions. Verbitski was outstanding for King's, making eight receptions for 106 yards and three scores. Bob Cirko caught five passes for 46 yards while Justin Dalton added four catches for 38 yards. King's was held to just 68 rushing yards on 32 carries by the Bombers, led by Jones with 40 yards on 20 attempts

King's will return to the field Saturday when the Monarchs travel to Hampden-Sydney College for a 1:00 p.m. contest in Hamden-Sydney, Virginia.