OCTOBER 29, 2010
MONARCH FOOTBALL TRAVELING TO FACE FIRST-PLACE DELAWARE VALLEY
WILKES-BARRE -- With the King's College football team in search of its first victory of the 2010 campaign, the task will get even tougher this week when the Monarchs travel to Doylestown to face Middle Atlantic Conference front-runner and eighth-ranked Delaware Valley College at 1:30 p.m. at James Work Memorial Stadium.
King's enters the game with an 0-7 overall mark and a 0-4 record in the MAC following a 21-19 home loss to Lebanon Valley College on Saturday. The frustrating loss marked the fourth time this season King's has suffered defeat by a seven points or less.
Delaware Valley, meanwhile, is 6-1 overall and 4-0 in the MAC after a 36-0 drubbing of Lycoming in a battle for first place between the only two remaining unbeaten teams in conference play entering the matchup.
ON THE AIR:
The WRKC radio broadcast of the game will be voice streamed over the Internet at the following link:
http://departments.kings.edu/wrkc/
The game will also be available on the Internet via LiveStats at the following link:
http://www.sidearmstats.com/delval/football
ABOUT THE GAME:
King's will be looking to avoid its third 0-8 start in program history. The Monarchs went 0-9 in 2007 before winning its season finale. The team also started out 0-8 in 1995 when the Monarchs finished 1-9. When King's added varsity football in 1993, the Monarchs started out 0-6, en route to a 1-9 campaign. King's also went 0-6 in 1994 before finishing the year with a 2-6-1 mark. The Aggies, meanwhile, will look to move one step closer to winning or sharing a third straight MAC title. Since 2004, Delaware Valley has either won or shared four MAC titles. Delaware Valley is currenty ranked eighth nationally in NCAA Division III.
ABOUT THE SERIES:
This is the 24th meeting between the two programs with Delaware Valley holding a 13-10 advantage. Delaware Valley has won the last six meetings between the teams, including a 47-21 triumph last season in Wilkes-Barre. King's last win over the Aggies came in Doylestown by a 35-23 margin in 2003, capping a six-game win streak by the Monarchs at the time.
THE COACHES:
Monarch mentor Jeff Knarr is in his first season at King's after spending the past 11 years as an assist at Muhlenberg College, serving the final four as offensive coordinator. Delaware Valley coach Jim Clements is in his fourth year and owns a 37-14 mark.
LAST WEEK:
King's suffered a 21-19 home setback to Lebanon Valley in a game the Monarchs led 12-9 with just over four minutes remaining. Delaware Valley dominated Lycoming by a 36-0 count.
KING'S ON OFFENSE: MULTIPLE - I
The Monarch offense is averaging 287.4 yards of total offense per-game, including 83.7 rushing yards and 203.7 passing yards. Senior quarterback Corey Lavin runs the show and has completed 124-of-249 passes for 1,424 yards with eight touchdowns and nine interceptions. The ground game is paced by sophomore tailback Eric Ofcharsky who tops the squad with 422 rushing yards on 105 carries with one touchdown, while catching 20 passes for 177 yards.
Sophomore David Abdalla tops the receivers with 31 catches for 553 yards and averages 17.8 yards per-reception with three touchdowns. Senior split end Jay Torres adds 25 catches for 352 yards and one touchdown while junior wide-out Glenn Ford contributes 20 catches for 180 yards and one score. Senior tight end John Cuiffo has caught 10 passes for 56 yards and one touchdown while junior fullback Jordan Haddock chips in with eight receptions for 42 yards. Senior tight end Ken Loomis has seven receptions for 49 yards.
DELAWARE VALLEY ON OFFENSE: MULTIPLE
The Delaware Valley offense enters the game averaging a whopping 457.1 yards of total offense per-game, including 209.6 rushing yards and 247.6 passing yards. Leading the offense in senior quarterback Mark Hatty who is in his first season as a starter. Hatty made his first collegiate start last season as a junior against King's and promptly completed 16-of-22 passes for 276 yards with three scores. The performance was a preview to his senior year as Hatty has flourished, completing 62.5 (135-216) percent of his passes for 1,573 yards with 12 touchdowns and five interceptions
The running game is led by senior tailback Matt Cook who is third in MAC rushing with 793 yards on 159 carries with 10 touchdowns. Perhaps equally as impressive is the fact Cook has been tackles for losses totaling just five yards the entire season. He has also been a weapon catching the ball out of the backfield, posting 10 receptions for 88 yards and an additional touchdown. The receivers are paced by senior Dan Heiland who has 38 catches for 539 yards and one score. Fellow senior split end Joe Gionfriddo follows with 21 receptions for 275 yards and five touchdowns.
KING'S ON DEFENSE: MULTIPLE 3-4
King's has allowed 392.4 yards of total offense per-game, including 233.7 rushing yards and 158.7 passing yards. Sophomore linebacker Ryan Kelly is third in the MAC with 83 tackles, including 3.0 sacks and a fumble recovery. Fellow second-year linebacker Ryan Cordingly is fifth in MAC with 58 tackles, including 8.0 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, and two fumble recoveries.
Senior safety Edwyn Edwards in eighth in the MAC with 53 tackles, two interceptions, and a forced fumble. Senior nose-guard Nick Beinke has posted 31 tackles with 4.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks. Senior end Craig Geibert has 30 tackles with 4.0 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. Junior safety Jim McHugh has posted 28 tackles with two interceptions while sophomore cornerback Andrew Yablonsky contributes 27 tackles with two interceptions. Senior defensive end Ryan Nelson has 27 tackles with 3.5 tackles for loss. Sophomore linebacker Matt Henry tallies 26 tackles with 7.0 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks while sophomore linebacker Mike Briggs checks in with 25 tackles.
DELAWARE VALLEY ON DEFENSE: MULTIPLE
The Aggie defense is the top-ranked unit in the MAC, allowing only 208.6 yards of total offense each game, including a conference-best 63.3 rushing yards and 145.3 passing yards per-contest. Additionally, Delaware Valley ranks first on scoring defense, allowing just 9.4 points per-game.
Leading the unit is all-American senior linebacker Kyle Gesswein who has registered 41 tackles with 9.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. Junior linebacker Chris James also has 41 tackles with two interceptions. Junior linebacker Ken Fowlkes follows with 38 tackles and a fumble recovery while junior safety Ryan McCullough adds 35 tackles and three interceptions. Sophomore linebacker Jim DeLisio contributes 34 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks while junior defensive end Mike Jaskowski totals 31 tackles, 6.5 sacks and an interception. Sophomore Amadeus Hall chips in with 28 tackles, 6.0 tackles for loss, and 4.0 sacks.
NEXT WEEK:
King's will play its final home game of the season when the Monarchs host FDU-Florham on Senior Day at 1:00 p.m. at McCarthy Stadium.
