Gators Fall in NCAC Opener at Wooster

Oct 2, 2004

Boxscore

Wooster, Ohio - Despite a career-high 117 yards rushing from sophomore running back Mario Tarquino (Charleroi, Pa.), the Allegheny College football team fell in its NCAC opener Saturday afternoon to the College of Wooster 35-13.

The loss, which was Allegheny's third of the season to a Top 25 team, drops the Gators to 1-3 overall and 0-1 in the NCAC. 17th-ranked Wooster improves to 4-0 on the year with a 1-0 mark in the conference.

The Gators dodged two Wooster scoring chances in the first quarter. On their second possession, Wooster had a short field to work with due to a short Allegheny punt. After reaching the Gator 30, junior defensive tackle Dan Monarko (Allison Park, Pa./ Hampton) stripped Scot QB Justin Schafer of the ball on a sack and AC junior defensive lineman Justen Altemus (Clearfield, Pa.) recovered to thwart the Scots threat. On Wooster's next possession, the Scots reached the Allegheny 14 before bringing on the field goal unit. Wooster kicker Richie McNally slipped on the wet field while attempting the kick and the 31-yard effort sailed wide right to keep the game scoreless after one quarter.

On the first play of its first possession of the second quarter, the Gators luck with turnovers ran out. After being pinned at their own nine by a Scots punt, junior fullback Matt DeGiovanni (Pittsburgh, Pa./ Mount Lebanon) fumbled on a carry and Wooster recovered. The Scots All-American running back Tony Sutton made Allegheny pay, as he broke through for a 10-yard scoring run to put the Scots ahead 7-0 just 30 seconds into the second quarter.

It looked like Wooster might add to their lead on their next possession, but Schafer overthrew a receiver and Gator junior cornerback Keith Keenan (Bloomingdale, Ohio/ Indian Creek) picked off the pass at the Gator 35 to end another potential Scots scoring threat.

Allegheny's trouble with the punting game continued midway through the second quarter. Punting from deep in their own end, a low snap forced Gator freshman punter Jason Black (Warren, Ohio/ Champion) to scramble and get a quick punt away that went out of bounds at Allegheny's 16. But the defense stepped up again to keep the hosts off the board, as on third down, Wooster receiver Tim Slovensky caught a screen but was sandwiched by Gator linebacker Mateo Villa (Windsor, Ohio/ Middlefield Cardinal) and safety Adam Klimas (Boardman, Ohio). The ball popped loose and AC junior defensive lineman Jon Black (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) recovered at the Gator nine-yard line to dodge yet another bullet and keep the Allegheny deficit at just 7-0 at halftime.

For the second time this season, the Gator offense was very ineffective in the first half. In Allegheny's 21-14 double-OT win at Westminster College Sept. 11, the Gators had two first downs and -2 yards of offense in the opening 30 minutes of the game. Today's game saw the Gators struggle just as much, as AC totaled just 22 yards and one first down, which came on the final play of the first half when Tarquinio broke off a 12-yard gain.

Meanwhile, Allegheny's defense kept the Gators in the game. Despite allowing 131 yards to the Scots, Allegheny forced three turnovers and Wooster missed a field goal to keep the Gators deficit at just a touchdown.

Although the defense did its job to keep the game close, the Gator special teams continued to struggle. On the opening kickoff of the second half, Sutton gathered in the boot at the 10-yard line and raced 90 yards for the touchdown to double the Scots lead to 14-0.

Allegheny's offense finally got to work following the kickoff return. Starting at the 11-yard line, Tarquinio broke off a career-long 42-yard run to get into Scot territory. On the next play, Allegheny sophomore quarterback Jimmy Savage (North Canton, Ohio/ Hoover) tossed a 27-yard pass to sophomore wideout Dallas Robinson (Wooster, Ohio/ Northwestern) down the sideline to the Wooster 21. Following an incomplete pass, Tarquinio scampered for 12 to the Scot nine-yard line, then took the next carry into the end zone to slice the Wooster lead to 14-7 with just two and a half minutes gone in the second half.

But as quickly as Allegheny cut into the Wooster lead, the Scots had an answer. A seven-play, 68-yard drive, highlighted by five carries by Sutton, was capped off by a 33-yard scoring pass from Schafer to McNally to increase Wooster's lead to 21-7 with 9:14 to play in the third quarter.

Late in the third quarter, the Scots put their third score of the period on the board. Wooster marched 88 yards in nine plays, with the highlight being a 32-yard scramble by Schafer down to the Gator one. Sutton would punch it in from there for his third score of the game as the Scots pushed their lead to 28-7 with 41 seconds to play in the third quarter.

The Gators did not quit in this one, as they put their second TD on the board early in the fourth. Tarquinio carried the ball twice for 27 yards on an 11-play, 68-yard drive that was capped off by an eight-yard scoring pass from Savage to Robinson on a fade pattern. Black's extra point was blocked, so the score remained 28-13 with 10:17 left in the game.

But that would be as close as the Gators would get to a comeback. Off the benefit of another short Allegheny punt due to a low snap, the Scots delivered the knockout punch as Schafer burst into the end zone from the two-yard line to finish off a seven-play, 36-yard drive to cap the scoring in the 35-13 Wooster victory.

Despite the loss, Tarquinio was a bright spot for the Gator offense. He needed just 14 carries to accumulate 117 of Allegheny's 199 total yards and scored his first career touchdown in the defeat. Savage hit on just 11 of 24 passes for 79 yards for one TD and one score. Allegheny's top receiver was Robinson, who hauled in four receptions for 47 yards and his second touchdown of the season.

The Gator defensive effort was led by junior Adam Duncan (Blairsville, Pa./ Derry Area) with 10 tackles, while senior cornerback Steve Williams (Westover, W.Va./ University) made nine stops and broke up two passes.

Wooster was led by their All-American Sutton, who had another outstanding day. He finished with 165 yards on the ground on 34 carries and scored a total of three touchdowns. Schafer was 8-21 through the air for 93 yards and a score and also rushed for 63 yards and another touchdown. McNally finished as the top pass catcher for the Scots with four receptions for 56 yards and a TD.

Allegheny goes back on the road next week to try to even its NCAC record. The Gators go to Ohio Wesleyan University for a 1 p.m. kickoff. Last season, Allegheny capped off its first perfect NCAC record since 1996 with a 20-12 triumph over the Bishops at Robertson Field.

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