Skip To Main Content

Allegheny College Athletics

The Official Athletics Site Of The Allegheny Gators
Allegheny College football vs. Waynesburg during Blue and Gold Weekend, Sept. 24, 2022. Photo by Ed Mailliard.
Ed Mailliard
20
Winner Allegheny ALL 3-7 , 2-6
17
Bethany (WV) BISON 1-8 , 0-8
Winner
Allegheny ALL
3-7 , 2-6
20
Final
17
Bethany (WV) BISON
1-8 , 0-8
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th OT F
ALL Allegheny 0 14 3 0 3 20
BISON Bethany (WV) 3 14 0 0 0 17

Game Recap: Football |

Paxton's OT Field Goal Lifts Football to Victory in 2022 Finale

BETHANY, W.Va. -- The Allegheny College football team concluded the 2022 season on a high note on a warm and sunny Saturday afternoon, as the Gators knocked off Bethany College in overtime, 20-17, thanks to the left foot of sophomore kicker Garrett Paxton (Freedom, Pa./Freedom Area).

The 19-yard game-winning field goal was redemption for Paxton, who was responsible for all six points scored in the second half of what proved to be a defensive struggle. The second-year kicker had an opportunity to seal the victory in regulation, but his 35-yard attempt with one minute remaining in the fourth quarter was low and off the mark.

After Paxton hit the go-ahead kick, Bethany's (1-8, 0-8 PAC) offense stalled on its first three plays in overtime. Facing a fourth-and-10 from the 25, the Bison chose to go for the 42-yard field goal to force a second overtime, but the kick was well short.

With neither team able to get the passing game into a rhythm, the running backs carried both offenses. Allegheny (3-7, 2-6 PAC) relied on the one-two punch of Tre Worship (East Cleveland, Ohio/Shaw) and John Ian Duron (Coral Springs, Fla./J.P. Taravella), who combined for 61 carries and 208 yards on the ground. Duron led the duo with 107 yards, which included a 26-yard score in the second quarter, while Worship finished with 101 yards on a game-high 38 attempts.

Trailing 10-0 early in the second quarter, the Gators jump-started their comeback attempt on a big play from second-year quarterback Trevor Brncic (Export, Pa./Franklin Regional). On a third-and-11, Brncic completed a 47-yard touchdown pass to Declan O'Brien (Irwin, Pa./Norwin) for Allegheny's first points of the contest. Duron's 26-yard score gave the Gators a brief 14-10 advantage, but the Bison scored before the half and led at the break, 17-14.

The defense's made their impact on the game from the get-go. On back-to-back possessions early in the first quarter, both teams threw interceptions, the first of which was recorded by Shane Cafardi (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) on Bethany's first offensive play of the day. David Babb (Pembroke Pines, Fla./Chaminade Madonna) added two picks in the third quarter.

Brothers Fletcher Hammond (Gibsonia, Pa./Deer Lakes) and Maxwell Hammond (Gibsonia, Pa./Deer Lakes) also combined for a turnover. The younger brother strip-sacked Bethany quarterback Marquice Robinson, and Maxwell Hammond picked up the loose ball to set up Duron's touchdown-scoring drive in the second quarter.

Inside the Box Score
  • Allegheny finished with 400 yards of total offense, with 213 yards on the ground and 187 through the air.
  • Bethany finished with 313 total yards and had a slight advantage in yards per play at 4.7.
  • Jack Johnson (Hingham, Mass./Hingham/Milford Academy) led Allegheny's QB duo with 109 yards, while Brncic passed for 78 yards on just two completions.
  • Duron (107) and Worship (101) both surpassed 100 yards rushing.
  • O'Brien caught two passes for a team-high 77 yards, including the 47-yard touchdown from Brncic.
  • Defensive lineman Chris Rubino (Monaca, Pa./The Kiski School) led the Gators on defense with 13 total tackles, including one for a loss.
  • Babb had seven tackles and two interceptions.
  • LJ Orbovich (Pittsburgh, Pa./Carrick) and Fletcher Hammond each had a sack for the Gators.
  • Paxton finished 2-for-3 on field goals with successful tries from 19 and 20 yards.

News and Notes
  • Saturday's game marked the first between Allegheny and Bethany since 2009.
  • The Gators improved to 18-15-1 in the all-time series, which began in 1926.
  • The overtime win is Allegheny's first since defeating Wabash College, 20-17, on September 22, 2012.
  • Allegheny's 400 yards of offense is the second-highest single-game total of 2022.
  • Three interceptions are the most by the AC defense since the Gators had three in the 2021 opener against Thiel College.
  • O'Brien tied a single-season career-best with his sixth touchdown reception and finished his junior year with a career-high 691 receiving yards.
  • Duron went over 100 yards on the ground for the first time as a Gator, while Worship did so for the fourth time this fall.
  • Rubino's 13 tackles are a single-game career-high.


 
Print Friendly Version