OCTOBER 5, 2017

KING'S FOOTBALL TRAVELING TO FACE LOCAL RIVAL MISERICORDIA

WILKES-BARRE — The King's College football team will return to the field on Saturday when the Monarchs travel up Route 309 North to face local rival Misericordia University in a 1:00 PM Middle Atlantic Conference matchup at Mangelsdorf Field.

Fans are asked to be aware it is Homecoming at Misericordia and parking may be limited for those arriving late to the game. KIng's field hockey team is also playing at Misericordia at 1:00 PM

King's (2-3, 1-3 MAC) has been involved in games decided in the last minute each of the last three weeks. The Monarchs defeated Lebanon Valley on September 16 with a 44-39 victory on a touchdown with 0:25 left.  Two weeks ago King's came out on the short end of a last minute win when Lycoming rallied for a 44-41 victory on a touchdown with 0:42. Then last week the Monarchs built a 27-14 lead over unbeaten MAC co-leader Albright befofre falling 34-31 on a field goal with 0:58 remaining in the contest.

Factor in King's 30-27 season-opening win over Moravian in a game the Monarchs won on a field goal with 1:37 left, then sealed the game with an interception with 0:51 on the clock, and King's has been involved in games not decided until less than a minute remained in four of their five games.

Misericordia  stands at 1-4 overall and 1-3 on the year. Two weeks ago the Cougars posted their fIrst win of the season against local rival Wilkes (43-14) and are looking to go 2-0 in the three-team area rivalries. Misericordia fell last week to defending MAC champion Stevenson in Owings Mills, Md.

King's and Misericordia have two common opponents so far this season. Stevenson defeated Kings  38-9 on September 9 while the Mustangs downed Misericordia 65-7 last  week. Albright defeated the Cougars 50-17 on  September 9 before the LIons bested King's 34-31 last week.
Ticket prices are set at $5 for adults, $3 for seniors, $3 for students.

Fans unable to attend can follow the game online at the following links:

Live Video:  http://athletics.misericordia.edu/news/2015/9/8/SID_0908152605.aspx?path=sid

LiveStats:   http://www.sidearmstats.com/misericordia/football/

WRKC Radio 88.5 FM:  http://wrkc.kings.edu/list/current.html


ABOUT THE GAME:
Today's game begins the second half of the season in the MAC as all 10 teams have played five games. King's is looking to snap a two-game losing stream while the Cougars are looking to return to the win column after a week-three victory.
 
ABOUT THE SERIES:
King's and Misericordia are separated by just 18 miles. This is the sixth meeting between the teams with King's holding a 5-0 series advantage. Three of King's victories have come by a one-score margin, including the 2013 meeting which the Monarchs won in double-overtime.    

THE COACHES:
Monarch mentor Jeff Knarr is in his eighth season at King's and owns a 24-51 career record. Cougar coach Mark Ross is in his sixth year and is 5-50 in building the Cougar program from scratch.              
   
LAST SEASON'S GAME:
The Monarchs built leads of 28-14, 35-21, and 42-28 before walking away with a 42-35 victory at King's McCarthy Stadium.

KING'S ON OFFENSE:  MULTIPLE-I
The Monarchs enter Saturday's game ranked third in the MAC in scoring with 31.0 points per-game. King's is first in total offense, averaging 438.0 yards per-game. The Monarchs are second in MAC passing yards with 307.4 per-game and are fourth in rushing with 130.6 yards each contest. Senior quarterback Zach Whitehead has completed 125-of-211 passes for 1,525 yards with 10 touchdowns and three interceptions. He has also rushed for 257 yards on 93 carries with eight more touchdowns. Whitehead stands in second place all-time at King's with 4,762 passing yards, trailing only Tyler Hartranft who had 5,943 from 2012-14.    

Junior running back Jordan Downes has 288 yards on 66 carries with two touchdowns while adding 16 receptions out of the backfield for 159 yards and one score.  Junior Titus Nelson has 100 rushing yards on 34 carries while making two catches for 81 yards and one score. The receivers are paced by senior Marquis Miller with 32 catches for 236yards while fellow senior Tyler Marroni follows with 31 receptions for 493 yards and two touchdowns. Senior H-back Trey Campbell has posted 22 receptions for 248 yards and four touchdowns while senior receiver Corey Flynn has caught 18 passes for 271 yards and two scores.       
    
MISERICORDIA ON OFFENSE:  MULTIPLE    
The Cougars are sixth in MAC scoring with 24.6 points per-game. Misericordia stands third in MAC total offense, averaging 416.0 yards per-game. The Cougars are second with 172.2 rushing yards and are fourth with 243.8 passing yards. Sophomore quarterback Brady Williams has completed 68-of-122 passes for 767 yards with six touchdowns and four interceptions. He has also rushed for 420 yards on 68 carries with a 6.2 yard average and three scores. Junior running back Clayton Vleck has rushed for 196 yards on 40 attempts with one touchdown while senior Mark Rainey adds 156 yards on 29 carries while also scoring once.

Soophomore receiver Isaiah Williams has caught a team-high 32 passes for 512 yards and two touchdowns. Fellow sophomore James Jackson follows with 21 receptions for 112 yards while  senior split end Kelly Klayton has hauled in  19 passes for 226 yards and one score. Junior Josh Dieter chips in with 11 catches for 170 yards and three touchdowns.
 
KING'S ON DEFENSE:  MULTIPLE    
King's entered the week ranked seventh in MAC scoring defense, allowing an average of 36.4 points per-game. The Monarchs are seventh in total defense in yielding 410.4 yards of total offense per-game. King's is second in rushing defense in allowing 114.6 yards each game while standing ninth in passing defense at 295.8 yards. Freshman linebacker Mando Sallavanti tops he squad with 33 tackles and three tackles for loss. contributes 23 tackles with 2.0 tackles for loss Senior linebacker Jake Manetti follows with 31 tackles, including  9.5 tackles for losses of 28 yards. Senior linebacker Bruce Damon  also has 31 tackles with 3.0 tackles for loss.

Sophomore cornerback Eli Vascos has registered 29 tackles with an interception while sophomore safety Trevor Hill follows with 27 tackles and three interceptions.  
Senior linebacker Hassan Maxwell , senior nose-guard Chris DeGaetano. senior cornerback Justin Foster, and senior  defensive end Jacoby Foresman have all registered 18 tackles. Senior defensive lineman Mike Dohn chips in with 13 stops.    
 
MISERICORDIA ON DEFENSE:  3-4    
The Cougar defense ranks last in the MAC in allowing 43.8 points per-game. Misericordia also ranks last in total defense in yielding 530.8 yards each contest. The Cougars are last in rushing passing defense in permitting  319.2 yards through the air, while standing ninth against the run at 211.6 yards.

Senior safety Tyler Collins leads the unit with 46 tackles and an interception. Sophomore Nick Yeager follows with 35 tckles and a sack. Junior linebacker Noah Bard has posted 26 tackles while Vincente Maldonado adds 25 tckleswith one interception. Senior linebacker Jordan Aquino has 20 tackles while senior defensive end Thomas Anderson has tallied 17 tackles while senior linebacker Jerry Struble, sophomore linebacker Henry Morris, and senior defensive end Fredo Santarelli chip in with 16 tckles apiece.

NEXT WEEK:
King's will take to the road next Saturday for a 1:00 PM matchup at MAC co-leader and current seventh-ranked (AFCA) Delaware Valley University.