Box Score Box Score
WEST CHESTER, Pa. – Jackson Fagan rushed for 172 yards and three touchdowns as No. 20 West Chester downed visiting Southern Connecticut State, 52-32, in a first-round NCAA II Playoff game at Farrell Stadium Saturday afternoon.
West Chester (9-3) took advantage of a turnover by Southern Connecticut St. (8-3) deep in its own territory to jump out to a 14-0 lead early in the contest and never trailed the entire game. For SCSU, it marked the fourth straight year in which the Owls have bowed out of the playoffs in the first round.
West Chester moves on to the second round of playoffs for the second time in the last three years. They will travel to Bloomsburg for a rematch with the Huskies at Redman Stadium on Saturday. Game time is set tentatively set for 12 p.m.
The Rams scored twice in the third quarter to open up a 42-18 lead, highlighted by defensive tackle Scott Schiavo’s 22-yard interception return for a touchdown. Schiavo’s runback was the fourth defensive touchdown for the Golden Rams this fall.
The two wide-open, explosive offenses combined for 944 yards of total offense with Southern Connecticut State actually outgaining West Chester by a close 479-465 margin.
Fagan opened the scoring when he scampered 61 yards down the near sideline, shedding a few tacklers on the way before diving across the goal line to put the Rams up 7-0. He would later score on a 7-yard run in the second quarter that put the hosts up 28-12 and a 4-yard run that would put them on top 35-18 late in the third.
Fagan has 930 yards rushing on the season in just 146 attempts, averaging 6.4 yards per carry.
Golden Rams quarterback Joe Wright was 18 of 25 for 250 yards and two touchdowns. His favorite target, Mike Washington, finished with four catches for 52 yards and a touchdown. Washington has now caught a pass in all 49 games in which he has appeared during his career, and he has caught a TD pass in 36 of those contests.
Wright eclipsed 3,000 yards passing in a season in the third quarter. He becomes just the fifth WCU quarterback to reach that milestone in a single season.
Place-kicker Alex Walsh broke the PSAC record for career PATs. He connected on all seven attempts and now has 176 in his four-year career.
SCSU quarterback Chris Roberts was 23 of 35 for 350 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions. Both Chris Bergeski and Andre Privott caught for more than 100 yards and a score each for the Owls.
NOTES: West Chester advances to the second round of the NCAA II playoffs for the second time in the last three years and the third time overall in school history … West Chester’s nine wins marks the first time in school history that the Golden Rams have won nine games in three consecutive years … West Chester improves to 5-8 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and 2-2 at home … Washington set a new personal best with 58 catches this fall … He now has 4,612 career receiving yards and 57 career touchdown receptions … QB Joe Wright has a PSAC-leading 3,074 yards passing and 27 TDs … he becomes the fifth player in WCU history to pass for more than 3,000 yards in a season.
