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BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – Quarterback Joe Wright snuck over the goal line on 4th-and-inches for the go-ahead touchdown with 2:26 remaining to cap a 24-21 victory for No. 19 West Chester over host and fourth-ranked Bloomsburg Saturday afternoon at Redman Stadium.
West Chester (8-2, 7-0 PSAC East) won its second straight Eastern Division crown with the win, snapping a 14-game winning streak by Bloomsburg (9-1, 6-1) in the process. With the win, the Golden Rams earned a berth in the PSAC Championship Game next weekend at California (Pa.), a 17-6 winner over Mercyhurst on Saturday.
Wright’s QB-keeper spoiled Homecoming Weekend for a boisterous Bloomsburg crowd of 6,783 on a beautiful sunny and warm afternoon in the Susquehanna Valley.
The Huskies squandered a golden opportunity to go up by a touchdown just before the Rams went on their game-winning march. Kicker Jon Koenig missed a 28-yard field goal on Bloomsburg’s previous possession that left the score 21-17.
West Chester’s defense came up huge after what could have been the most costly mistake of the game. After Bloomsburg took the lead on a 5-yard pass from Dan Latorre to WR Kyle Rheam, his second TD of the day, Rams’ kick-returner Dan DePalma fumbled the ensuing kickoff at West Chester’s 7-yard line.
Bloomsburg took over with a chance to put the game away with nine minutes left in the contest. However, West Chester’s defense hung tough, and the Huskies were whistled for a holding penalty that pushed them back 10 yards, forcing the hosts to attempt a field goal.
“We sent our defense in there telling them to keep their heads up and hold (Bloomsburg) to a field goal. They had to do that,” Rams head coach Bill Zwaan said. “Obviously, the holding call forced them to kick the ball from further back, and fortunately for us, (Koenig) missed it.”
The win ended an eight-game winning streak by the home team in this heated rivalry and marked the first time since 1999 that West Chester came away victorious on the road against Bloomsburg.
“We’ve been in this position before and didn’t get the job done,” commented Zwaan when asked about West Chester’s achilles’ heel of losing to Bloomsburg on the road. “We just hung in there, and hung in there, and it is a testament to our kids, who did a wonderful job down the stretch to win this game.”
Wright finished the day 14 of 26 for 228 yards and a touchdown to All-American WR Mike Washington. The wideout registered his 22nd career 100-yard game with five catches for 116 yards. He is 72 yards shy of becoming just the third player in college football history at any level to catch for 1,000 yards in all four years of his career.
Junior TE Ryan Paulson finished the day with four catches for 77 yards, including a 29-yard catch down to the Bloomsburg 3-yard line on West Chester’s game-winning drive. That drive was aided by a 15-yard, roughing the passer, penalty on Bloomsburg on a 2nd-and-17 for the Golden Rams from their own 23-yard line.
Jackson Fagan carried the ball on 1st-and-goal for no gain. Then, Pat McDermott picked up one yard on 2nd-and-goal, before Fagan mustered one more yard on 3rd-and-goal that put the ball inside the 1-yard line and brought about 4th down.
Bloomsburg called a timeout to talk over how they would defend the upcoming biggest play of the game.
“The sneak worked against East Stroudsburg,” Zwaan explained. “We put Washington in motion, and I think that may have confused them as to what we were running. I just told Wright that he has to get up and over the top.”
Junior LB Mike Dell registered 13 tackles, including one sack, for a defense that held the PSAC’s leading rusher, Derrick Price, to 94 yards on 19 carries.
West Chester advances to the re-instated “State” Game next Saturday and will travel to Western Division winner Cal for the second time this year. The game is scheduled to be aired live on FSN Pittsburgh. The Vulcans topped the Golden Rams, 44-32, during the first week of the season on Aug. 30.
NOTES: West Chester ends Bloomsburg’s 14-game winning streak with a 24-21 win on the road … the Golden Rams also ended a personal five-game losing streak to the Huskies at Redman Stadium that dated back to 1999 … WR Mike Washington registered his 22nd 100-yard receiving day … he also caught a TD pass in a game for the 34th time in his 47 career games played …. Washington now has 928 yards receiving on the year and moved into sixth place on the NCAA DII all-time chart with 4,443 career yards … he also has 55 career TD catches … Washington also tied the school record for career points with 342 … QB Joe Wright has thrown for 2,479 yards this year – seventh most in a single season in WCU football history.
