[Kutztown Football] Shippensburg 10, Kutztown 3

Sat Aug 27 20:14:30 EDT 2005

NCAA Football

Saturday, August 27, 2005

Shippensburg (1-0)      10

Kutztown (0-1)           3

KUTZTOWN, PA - Walter Crump scored on a one-yard run with 6:22 left in the game to break a 3-3 deadlock and give Shippensburg University a 10-3 win over Kutztown in the season-opener for both teams at University Field Saturday afternoon.

            The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference inter-division game was played before 4,500 on the new artificial turf field at University Field. It was Shippensburg's seventh-straight win over Kutztown.

            Crump's TD capped a 10-play, 41-yard drive that proved to be the game winner.  It was the only time anyone got into the end zone in the defensive struggle, which saw the teams combine for just 437 yards of total offense.

The Raiders held off a late comeback attempt by the Golden Bears in the final minute.  KU took over with 35 seconds left at its own 20.  On the first play, Quarterback Kyle Spotts was intercepted by Shippensburg's Brent Grimes at the Ship 40.  Grimes returned the pick 35 yards, but was stripped of the ball by Jason Henley and Spotts recovered it for the Golden Bears at their own 25.  

Spotts shook off the pick on the very next play, connecting with Mike Zulkowski for 44 yards to move to Ship's 31 with nine seconds left.  The comeback faltered there, as two Spotts passes into the end zone were broken up by Raiders DB Ben Franklin.

            Chris Lynch led all players with 50 yards on 13 carries for Shippensburg.  Crump had 41 yards on eight rushes and Aaron Dykes added 49 on 11.  SU quarterback Tony Gomez passed for 81 yards completing 12-of-27 with one interception.  Jonathan Aldridge had nine tackles for Ship.   Grimes had a pair of interceptions, while Frankin batted down five passes.  

            Spotts connected on 14-of-39 passes for 152 yards, but was picked off four times.  Zulkowski caught three passes for 82 yards.  Tony Bria rushed for 33 yards on eight carries.  Mike Grosso led the defense with four sacks, forcing a pair of fumbles on two of them.  Drew Hicks and Greg Mitchell tallied 11 tackles each.

            Kutztown got on the board first early in the second quarter.  The Bears drove from their own 25 yard line to inside the Shippensburg 10.  With a first and goal at the five, KU was unable to punch it in, settling instead for a 28 yard field goal by Matt Scartozzi with 13:46 left in the first half.

            The Raiders answered with a field goal of its own on its next drive.  Grimes set it up with a 37 yard kick return, giving SU the ball at midfield.  Eight plays and 35 yards later, Jamie Reder connected on a 32 yard field goal to knot the score with 10:52 left in the second.

            The teams traded punts and failed fourth down conversions before Shippensburg threatened at the end of the half.  The Raiders drove to KU's three yardline.  Gomez hit Howard Chavous in the end zone for an apparent TD, but it was called back on an illegal motion penalty.  On the next play, Matt Millard picked off Gomez' errant throw in the back of the end zone and KU ran out the clock.  

            In the third quarter, Kutztown recovered two fumbles in Shippensburg territory.  The first came after Grosso sacked Gomez on the third play of the half and Kevin Branco recovered it.  KU took over at the Ship 39, but failed to get a first down.  Later, Greg Mitchell forced a fumble at the Shippensburg 41 that was recovered by Louie Gibbs.  Spotts was intercepted three plays later.

            Kutztown's first possession of the fourth quarter ended in a turnover as well, when Maurice Adams fumbled at the Shippensburg 33.  The loose ball was recovered by John Sharbaugh.  

            Shippensburg's scoring drive came after the teams traded punts.  The Golden Bears attempted to answer, when Spotts hit Zulkowski for a 20-yard reception, KU's initial first down of the second half.  The momentum was short lived, however, as Spotts' next pass was picked off by Sharbaugh with 5:06 left.

            KU's defense gave the Golden Bears another chance.  Grosso notched his fourth sack when he came through the line untouched to blindside Gomez.  The ball came loose and Branco recovered it at the Shippensburg 34.  After a pair of sacks by Ship's Arlan Johnson, two long passes by Spotts fell incomplete to turn it over on downs.

            The Raiders were forced to punt with 35 seconds left, setting up KU's last gasp comeback attempt.

            The Golden Bears (0-1) hit the road next Saturday at Clarion.  Shippensburg travels to Shepherd next week.

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Josh Leiboff
Kutztown University Sports Information
Phone: (610) 683-4182
Fax: (610) 683-4676
Email: leiboff at kutztown.edu
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