September 17, 2009

Kramer’s 151 yards rushing not enough for Juniata football to get past Gettysburg

GETTYSBURG, Pa. – Juniata College posted a season-high 292 yards of total offense, but Gettysburg College responded with a Centennial Conference record 525 yards rushing as Bullets downed the Eagles, 59-14, Saturday afternoon at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium.

GETTYSBURG, Pa. – Juniata College posted a season-high 292 yards of total offense, but Gettysburg College responded with a Centennial Conference record 525 yards rushing as Bullets downed the Eagles, 59-14, Saturday afternoon at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium. 

Junior tailback Derek Kramer (Newville, Pa./Big Spring) rushed for 151 yards on 26 carries, becoming the first Eagle player to rush for 100 yards in a game since Kyle McKechnie (Shillington, Pa./Governor Mifflin) ran for 181 yards against Gallaudet University to close the 2007 season.  

Senior Ryan Blanchette (Westminster, Md./Francis Scott Key) and freshman Quadir Christian (Johnstown, Pa./Greater Johnstown) also saw significant work out of the backfield; each carried six times, and finished with 29 and 25 yards respectively.

Senior quarterback Alex Snyder (Boalsburg, Pa./State College Area) was 6-of-12 through the air for 53 yards, and threw one interception. Snyder’s preferred target for the day was senior wideout Matt Dunker (Glenshaw, Pa./Shaler) with a pair of catches for 36 yards.

Gettysburg (3-4, 3-2 Centennial) scored on four of its first five possessions, with Juniata scoring a touchdown of its own in the first quarter.
The Eagles capped a 10-play, 70-yard drive with Kramer’s 14-yard TD rush, which came on the heels of a 19-yard carry by Snyder. That score knotted the game at 7-7 at the 5:58 mark of the first quarter, and things looked promising for the Eagles after the Bullets fumbled the ensuing kickoff to give Juniata possession at the 50-yard line. 

Gettysburg forced Juniata to go three-and-out, and the Bullets responded with a nine-play, 99-yard scoring drive that resulted in a Jamel Mutunga touchdown rush to retake a 14-7 lead. 

A Juniata fumble on the kickoff gave Gettysburg the ball right back on the Juniata 32, and the Bullets scored five plays later for a 21-7 lead to close out the first quarter.

Gettysburg tacked on another touchdown early in the second quarter, before Juniata struck again on another long scoring drive.  

Kramer recorded his second scoring rush of the day, a five-yard TD carry with 3:16 remaining in the half. The score terminated a seven-play, 80-yard march up the field, which included a 44-yard rush by Kramer. 

That was all the scoring Juniata would post over the rest of the afternoon, while Gettysburg scored four more touchdowns and added a field goal in the second half. 

The Bullets’ 525 yards rushing set a new Centennial Conference record, while Gettysburg quarterback Matt Flynn became the league’s all-time leading passer behind a 9-of-13 for 151 yards performance. Three Gettysburg players had over 100 yards rushing, led by Anthony DeSalva with 144 yards on 18 carries. 

Defensively, the Eagles were led by senior linebacker Tyler Hall (Alexandria, Pa./Juniata Valley) with 12 total tackles, including seven solo tackles. Junior lineman Matt Walton (West Chester, Pa./Downingtown West) logged 11 tackles, with nine unassisted stops.  Cornerback Kyle McKechnie and safety Beau Ryan (Clearfield, Pa./Clearfield) each registered an interception. 

Juniata (0-7, 0-5 Centennial) remains on the road next Saturday when it heads to Bethlehem, Pa., to face Moravian College. Kick-off is scheduled for 1:05 p.m.

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