EDINBORO, Pa. –Fighting Scots head coach Jake Nulph saw improvement despite a 41-37 defeat to the traditionally high-powered West Chester Golden Rams in a long road trip.
It took all of 28 seconds for Edinboro to prove they came to play Saturday, as a strong push from the offensive line allowed running back Anfreenee Williams to bolt downfield for a Fighting Scots touchdown giving the visitors an early lead.
Edinboro had deferred the opening kick, but the early strike resulted from an Anthony Mendicino interception that was returned 19 yards into enemy territory. Williams did the rest with the 25-yard score.
The Golden Rams answered with a scoring drive of their own when Phil Poquie ran in from 16 yards out to tie the contest.
Tannor Watson completed 12-yard passes to receivers Jake L'Heureux and Thaddeus Standfield on the drive, but the West Chester defensive line got to Watson and forced a fumble.
The Rams scored their second touchdown by way for a Shane Dooley pass to Jalen Jackson for 24 yards, but the Fighting Scots would stand their ground.
After the point after was missed, Edinboro trailed 13-7.
A 16-yard Josh Boyd kickoff return set the Scots up on their own 26, before Watson connected with L'Heureux for 37 yards. Watson then hit Jack Hollibaugh for a seven-yard gain before connecting with Standfield for 11 yards to setup another touchdown.
Running back Dontae Sanders lined up in the quarterback position, took the snap and followed his blockers ahead for six yards. Vincente Arriagada hit his second point after of the day and the Scots went ahead 14-13.
Williams finished the first quarter with 32 rushing yards, and Watson was 5-of-6 for 79 yards. Andrew McLellan had four total tackles in the first, splitting a tackle for loss with Branson Smith.
West Chester continued a drive in the second quarter, but Edinboro forced a field goal attempt from 33 yards that Reed Martin blocked to retain the lead.
Watson completed passes to Standfield and Howie Reid III before Zach Leggit stepped in front of a pass and returned it for a Rams touchdown.
The following drive ended with a 41-yard punt by Martin then 57-yard touchdown pass from Dooley to Rasheem James to put West Chester on top 26-14.
The point after attempt was blocked by Edinboro's Bishop Simmons, the second block of the afternoon for the Scots.
Williams would fumble on the Scots next drive, after a rush of three yards, setting the Rams up on the 27-yard line. Ja'Den McKenzie would reach paydirt to make it a 32-14 game in favor of the Rams.
In the four-minute offense, Watson navigated methodically, finding Reid III for a short gain then Jon Long for a long gain of 27 yards. Then completions to Standfield and Darfnell Gouin moved Edinboro into the red zone. Watson connected with Long again for seven yards, before a Sanders run set up a Williams two-yard touchdown.
The point after made the West Chester lead 32-21 heading into the half.
Watson was 8-15 for 74 yards in the second quarter and Edinboro went 3-for-5 on third down conversions.
Boyd gave the Scots favorable field position to begin the second half, returning the kick 44 yards to the Edinboro 49-yard line.
Watson went back to Standfield for 18 yards on third and fourteen to pickup the first down and continue the drive.
After rushes of seven, five and three yards by Sanders, Watson ran seven yards himself to get Edinboro into field goal range.
Arriagada made good on the effort, and he made a 38-yard kick and pulled the visitors within a score.
The following drive looked promising for the Rams as they moved closer to midfield reaching their 47-yard line.
That's when Micah Thomas picked Dooley off, stymieing the threat.
After punts by both teams, the quarter ended with West Chester holding the slight advantage.
Martin's two punts netted 85 yards in the third and Thomas logged five total tackles in the quarter.
Edinboro forced a fourth and three to begin the fourth quarter and stopped the Rams to take over on their own 27.
Jordan Castelli came in at quarterback to begin the drive with an 11-yard rush, then Watson went back to work through the air.
L'Heureux caught another pass before Watson found his running back Williams for a 31-yard gain. This set up another opportunity for Sanders who used three rushes for 15 yards to score and make the deficit 34-30 for Edinboro.
Amir Walton and McLellan interrupted a West Chester drive dropping Dooley for a sack of ten yards. Clay Cunningham hurried the quarterback to force an incompletion and the Rams were forced to punt.
Williams would score again on the ground to follow, this time for 30 yards away and Edinboro took the lead with 3:56 remaining, 37-34.
Dooley and McKenzie handled the duties for West Chester on a drive that ended when McKenzie scored on a one-yard touchdown rush.
Edinboro gave themselves a chance late with completions to Gouin and L'Heureux, though it took another clutch play by Watson to get two more chances to score.
He found Standfield once more, this time on fourth down, and the Scots took their second timeout with 15 seconds remaining. Watson took two chances, heaving passes into the end zone but ultimately the Scots would fall short by a 41-37 final.
"We are obviously disappointed with the outcome but there are a lot of positive things to build on. We showed our mettle and fought until the very end. We just came up short. Congrats to Coach Swaan on his 200th win. He and his staff did a great job. We need to learn from this and continue to improve each week. We will watch the film, make corrections and get ready to play Cal (Pa.)."
Head Coach Jake Nulph
-Mendicino and Standfield led the Scots in tackles with seven each. Mendicino added an interception and 19-yard return, while McLellan had a five-yard tackle for loss.
-Thomas finished with six tackles and an interception
-Smith had four tackles with 1.5 going for losses of 10 total yards
-The Fighting Scots had three blocks in Saturday's game
-Watson finished 23-38 for 257 yards, connecting with eight different receivers
-Standfield each had seven receptions for the game, while Standfield totaled 78 yards and L'Heureux had 73
-Williams led all rushers with 73 yards on 12 carries, with three touchdowns
-Sanders finished with 45 yards and two touchdowns
-Each team had 22 first downs on the afternoon
-Edinboro held the advantage through the air, 257-151
-The Scots won the time of possession battle by two minutes and 41 seconds
Edinboro will host the California (Pa.) Vulcans Saturday, Sept. 25 at Sox Harrison Stadium with a noon kickoff.
