No. 14 West Chester Escapes Shippensburg With 29-21 Win

SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – R-Fr., RB Ja'Den McKenzie (Morton, Pa./Springfield-DELCO) rushed for 125 yards and two touchdowns to lead 14th-ranked West Chester to a 29-21 victory over host Shippensburg Saturday afternoon at Seth Grove Stadium.
 
West Chester (5-0, 2-0 PSAC) remains in a three-way tie for first place in the Eastern Division of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference while Shippensburg (1-4, 1-1) falls into a tie for fourth.
 
McKenzie's two TD runs were the final two scores of the game and sparked a come-from-behind win for the Golden Rams on the road. His 18-yard scamper with under two minutes left in the third quarter put West Chester in front for good, 22-21, while his 30-yard race to paydirt with under two minutes left in the game salted away the contest, 29-21.
 
West Chester had jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the first quarter on a 23-yard field goal by Andrew Chegia (Kennett, Pa./Unionville) and a 67-yard touchdown reception by Gabe Schappell (Reading, Pa./Exeter).
 
However, the hosts battled back on consecutive touchdown runs by Luke Durkin. The Shippensburg running back scored all three of the home team's touchdowns Saturday.
 
Marcus Wilson (Reading, Pa./Berks Catholic) ran in from 1-yard out with 10 minutes left in the half to give West Chester a 16-14 lead it would take into the locker room. When Durkin busted in from the 1-yard line with five mintues to go in the third, Shippensburg was back on top, 21-16.
 
That is when the Golden Rams top-ranked defense came alive in the fourth quarter, forcing three punts, including two drives that were 3-and-out.
 
Jalik Smith (Harrisburg, Pa./Susquehanna) led West Chester tacklers with seven stops while Ch'aim Smith (York, Pa./York Suburban) finished with six tackles, including four for a loss and one sack.
 
West Chester returns home next Saturday for another PSAC showdown with arch-rival Bloomsburg at Farrell Stadium. Kick is set for 12:06 p.m. The game will be broadcast live by SportsFever TV. Check your local listings for channel in your area. The game will also be streamed on Facebook Live by both universities.