Box Score
WORCESTER, Mass. - Jay Bernardo rushed for 150 yards and 1 TD and Brendan McGowan caught 5 passes for 144 yards and 2 TDs in leading Rensselaer to a 31-15 victory over Worcester Polytechnic Institute in a Liberty League contest this afternoon at WPI's Alumni Field.
With the win, Rensselaer upped its record to 6-1 overall, and 4-1 in the Liberty League. The Engineers of RPI also retained the Transit Trophy for the 9th consecutive year. WPI, meanwhile fell to 4-3 overall, and 2-3 in the conference.
It was a tale of two halves, with WPI pretty much dominating the first half, and RPI very much dominating the second half.
WPI built a 12-0 lead by scoring on its first three possessions. WPI scored on an almost-unheard-of 21-play drive on its first possession. The 67-yard march, which took 9:19 off the clock, culminated in a 27-yard field goal by senior placekicker Jeremy Griffin (Waterford, CT).
After an RPI three-and-out, WPI then marched 95 yards on 14 plays, taking another 6:48 off the clock. This drive culminated with a 5-yard TD run by senior fullback Brian Farragher (Clinton, MA) with 11:51 left in the second quarter. The extra point attempt was blocked by junior
Graham Boyd (Wappingers Falls, NY), but WPI led 9-0.
RPI managed one first down on its next drive before punting. WPI then ran off another 10 plays, driving 57 yards, but could only manage another field goal, this one of 32 yards, by Griffin. With 6:19 left in the second, WPI had its high-water mark at 12-0.
Rensselaer finally put together its first decent drive of the afternoon in the last two minutes of the first half. With 28 seconds left, junior TE
Jon Branche (Schenectady, NY) scored on an 8-yard pass from freshman QB
Jimmy Robertson (Yonkers, NY). Junior placekicker Andrew Taranto (Baldwinsville, NY) booted home the extra point to make it 12-7, WPI.
WPI was not finished, however, in that first half. Senior TE Adam Evans (Canton, MA) returned the kickoff 34 yards to the RPI 41. Sophomore QB Rob Pantalone (Camp Hill, PA) then hit starring sophomore WR Mike Butler (Athol, MA) for 36 yards to the RPI 5. Following an incomplete pass into the end zone, Griffin nailed his third field goal of the half from 22 yards out to
give WPI a 15-7 lead at the intermission.
But as much as the first half belonged to WPI, so did the second belong to RPI.
RPI received the kickoff to start the third period and immediately marched 64 yards in 9 plays. With 11:25 left in the third, Taranto kicked a 27-yard field goal to cut the margin back to 15-10.
Although WPI was forced to punt on its next possession, it was still in decent shape as RPI took over on its own 22. But this is when things started to unravel.
That is when McGowan found himself in the clear behind the secondary on the very next play, scoring on a 78-yard TD bomb from Robertson. And RPI had its first lead at 17-15 with 7:39 left in the third.
Two possessions later, the same duo hooked up again on a 42-yard TD bomb. That drive took just 4 plays and went 75 yards. RPI was now leading 24-15, and getting on a roll.
A 50-yard punt by Griffin set RPI back onto its own 2-yard line to start the fourth quarter. But 9 plays and 98 yards later, RPI's Bernardo, a running back from East Greenbush, NY, scampered in from 3 yards out to give the Engineers its final 31-15 margin.
RPI continued to have more chances, but Taranto missed a 32-yard field goal attempt (wide right), and later Bernardo fumbled at the WPI 10, recovered by sophomore DB Dustin Bradway (Glastonbury, CT).
All told, RPI had 23 first downs to WPI's 22. But RPI gained 552 total net yards to WPI's 352. RPI rushed for 223 yards and passed for 329. RPI totaled 329 yards in the second half alone. WPI rushed for 157 yards and passed for 195.
For RPI, Bernardo led all rushers with 150 yards and 1 TD on 24 carries. Robertson rushed for another 45 yards on 4 carries. In passing, Robertson was 18-for-32 for 329 yards and 3 TDs with just 1 interception. He was sacked once. McGowan caught 5 passes for 144 yards and 2 TDs, including his long of 78. Branche also caught 5 passes for 82 more yards and 1 TD.
For WPI, the leading rusher was Farragher with 71 yards and 1 TD on 20 carries. Pantalone ran for another 55 on 13 carries. Pantalone was 16-for-31 for 195 yards with 1 interception. He was sacked twice. Butler, the reigning Liberty League Co-Offensive Player of the week, caught 9
passes for 128 yards. Griffin was 3-for-3 in field goal atempts. He also punted 7 times for a 39.4 average.
On defense, RPI was led by senior DL
Mark Byrne (Ludlow, MA) with 8 tackles (all solos), including 3 for tackles-for-loss and 1 sack. Senior LB
Jimmy Motzkin (Lynnfield, MA) also had 8 tackles (4 solos). Senior DB
Adam LoGiudice (Massapequa, NY) had 3 tackles, 1 interception, and 1 pass break-up.
For WPI, the game's leading tackler was freshman ILB Matt Boudreau (Rensselaer, NY) with 12 (9 solos), plus 2 forced fumbles and 1 sack. Senior DB Virgil Vaillancourt (Newington, NH) had 7 tackles, 1 tackle-for-loss, 1 interception, and 1 pass break-up.
It was Senior Day at WPI as 17 seniors saw their last action at Alumni Field. Next Saturday, WPI plays at Coast Guard at 1 pm. Rensselaer hosts Rochester at 1 pm.
