NCAA Football: West Chester Topped by Lenior-Rhyne in Semifinals
WEST CHESTER TOPPED BY LENIOR-RHYNE IN SEMIFINALS
Hickory, N.C. – Lenior-Rhyne’s triple option offense was too much for West Chester in the Division II Football Championship Semifinals on Saturday at Moretz Stadium, as the Bears earned a 42-14 win over West Chester.
West Chester ends its season 13-2 overall, while Lenior-Rhyne advances to the national championship game in Florence, Alabama against Northwest Missouri State.
Wide receiver
Tim Brown gave the Golden Rams a 7-0 lead on the game’s opening drive with a nine-yard reception from
Sean McCartney. The Rams received excellent field position thanks to a
Brandon Monk 75-yard kick-off return.
The Bears responded with touchdowns with 10:28 to go in the first quarter, and another at the 13:41 mark in the second. With the Bears up 12-7,
Rondell White regained the lead for West Chester with a 60-yard reception from McCartney with just under 11 minutes to play in the opening half. From there, it was all Lenior-Rhyne, as the Bears posted an additional four touchdowns to seal the 42-14 victory.
Lenior-Rhyne executed 70 offensive plays, all of which were rushing for 451 yards. West Chester netted 213 yards of offense, 135 through the air and 78 on the ground. White finished with 67 rushing and 75 receiving yards, while surpassing 3,000 all-purpose yards on the season on his 60-yard touchdown catch.
The NCAA Semifinal appearance was just the second in program history for the Golden Rams. West Chester’s other appearance was in 2004 when the Rams lost to Valdosta State 45-21.
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WEST CHESTER PREPARES FOR SEMIFINAL
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Courtesy of West Chester Sports Information
West Chester, Pa. - West Chester University's football squad began its preparation for its national semifinal contest against Lenoir-Rhyne on Saturday, Dec. 14 at 12:05 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN3.
The Golden Rams, who began the season unranked in Division II and worked their way up to No. 15 in the country by the end of the regular season, are one of four teams left playing football the second week in December. Northwest Missouri State will take on Grand Valley State in the other semifinal Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
West Chester (13-1), who has already set a record for wins in a single season, will make its second appearance in the national semifinals and first since 2004. The Golden Rams will also tie a school record for games played in a single season (15) when it takes the field on Saturday. The Rams played 15 games in 2004, finishing 11-4 overall.
West Chester's road to the semifinals began at home with a 38-7 victory over Northeast-10 champion, American International College. The Golden Rams then took to the road for its next two wins, defeating PSAC Champion, Bloomsburg, 40-38, in the second round, before topping Mountain East Conference champion, Shepherd, 28-7, in the Super Region 1 Championship Game last Saturday.
The Golden Rams are 7-0 on the road this fall and bring an overall eight-game road winning streak into Saturday's semifinal. Bloomsburg was the last home team to beat West Chester Nov. 3 of last year.
WCU HEADED TO NCAA FOOTBALL SEMIFINALS
Shepherdstown, W. Va. – West Chester defeated Shepherd 28-7 in the NCAA Division II Football Quarterfinals on Saturday afternoon in Shepherdstown, W. Va.
With the NCAA Quarterfinal victory and the Super Region One title, the Golden Rams advance to play Lenior-Rhyne in the NCAA Semifinals on Saturday, December 14. The start time and location of the game will be determined by the NCAA.
West Chester led 14-7 at the half with a first quarter
Rondell White touchdown and a
Sean McCartney touchdown pass to
LaRonn Lee in the second. After a scoreless third quarter, two West Chester interceptions returned for touchdowns gave the Rams their 28-7 win.
Al-Hajj Shabazz intercepted Jeff Ziemba with six minutes left in the game and returned it 76 yards to the endzone. On Shepherd’s next possession,
Brandon Pepper snagged another Ziemba pass and returned it 35 yards to pay-dirt. Pepper notched another interception on Shepherd’s ensuing possession.
The NCAA Quarterfinal win is the second-ever for West Chester, as the program reached the quarterfinals just once before and advanced to the semifinals with a 48-38 win over East Stroudsburg in 2004. The Golden Rams fell to Valdosta State in the national semifinals that year.
The other NCAA Semifinal will feature Northwest Missouri State against Grand Valley State. Northwest Missouri State defeated St. Cloud State, 59-21, while Grand Valley State defeated West Texas A&M, 35-28, in the other quarterfinal contests on Saturday.
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WEST CHESTER TOPS BLOOMSBURG IN SECOND ROUND
Bloomsburg, Pa. – West Chester outlasted Bloomsburg 40-38 in the NCAA Division II Football Second Round contest at Redman Stadium in Bloomsburg, Pa. on Saturday afternoon.
The Golden Rams will now travel to play Shepherd in the Super Region One finals on Saturday, December 7 at 12:00 p.m. The NCAA Quarterfinal appearance is just the second for West Chester in school history and its first since 2004. The Golden Rams' 12 wins this season also set a new school record.
West Chester quarterback
Sean McCartney completed 24 of his 39 pass attempts while tossing two touchdown passes and rushing for one touchdown. Kicker
Shawn Leo made good on four of his five field goal attempts, including a 43-yarder with 7:21 left in the game to put the contest out of the Huskies’ reach.
West Chester led Bloomsburg throughout the entire contest, with it’s largest point margin coming after a
Tim Brown touchdown catch that increased West Chester’s lead to 34-17 in the third quarter.
Bloomsburg, the 2013 PSAC Champion, ended its season with a 10-2 overall record. Frankyn Quiteh finished the season with 2,195 yards rushing and completed his Bloomsburg career holding nearly every school and conference rushing record. Quiteh rushed for 7,523 yards during his collegiate career which ranks second-most all-time in Division II history.
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NCAA FIRST ROUND
WEST CHESTER TO PLAY BLOOMSBURG IN SECOND ROUND
West Chester, Pa
. – West Chester defeated American International College, 38-7, in the first round of the NCAA Division II Football Championship Saturday afternoon at John A. Farrell Stadium.
Senior running back
Rondell White broke the school's all-time rushing record that had stood for 23 years and junior quarterback
Sean McCartney threw for 423 yards and four touchdowns in the victory. White now has 4,062 yards rushing, and he is the first player in PSAC history to rushing for over 4,000 yards, catch for more than 2,000 yards and return kickoffs for more than 1,000 yards in a career.
The Golden Rams are now 6-9 overall in postseason play and the win gave the Rams their 11
th win of the season to tie the school record for wins in a single season.
West Chester will now play Bloomsburg in the second round at Redman Stadium on Saturday, November 30, at 12:00 p.m. The Huskies handed the Golden Rams their lone loss of the season, 31-28, back on November 9.
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SLIPPERY ROCK ENDS SEASON WITH NCAA FIRST ROUND LOSS
Winston-Salem, N.C. - Slippery Rock’s 2013 football season came to an end on Saturday afternoon with a 27-20 loss at Winston-Salem State University in first-round action of the NCAA Division II football playoffs.
Winston-Salem State will face top-seeded, sixth-ranked Shepherd University in West Virginia in the NCAA Second Round.
Slippery Rock’s
Teddy Blakeman got The Rock on the board first with a two-yard rush for paydirt with 10:51 to go in the first quarter.
Slippery Rock’s
Quindell Dean intercepted a Rams’ pass for an 18-yard return for a touchdown to put the Rock within a touchdown of Winston-Salem.
Quarterback
Nigel Barksdale snuck into the endzone for one last touchdown in the third quarter to end the game’s scoring.
The loss was The Rock's second in as many weeks, both of which came against nationally-ranked rivals, and gave the fifth-seeded, 20th-ranked Rock a 9-3 final record.
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NCAA FOOTBALL ANNOUNCEMENT
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Indianapolis - Slippery Rock, West Chester and Bloomsburg gained entry in the NCAA Division II Football Championship tournament as part of a field of 24 teams, announced by the NCAA on Sunday evening.
No. 3-seed West Chester will host No. 6-seed Amercian International on Saturday, November 23 in the Super Region One First Round.
No. 5-seed Slippery Rock gained entry and will travel to No. 4-seed Winston-Salem State on November 23 in the First Round.
PSAC Champion and No. 2-seed Bloomsburg earned a First Round bye and will host the winner of West Chester and Amercian International on Saturday, November 30.
Quarterfinal winners will advance to play in the semifinals on the campus of one of the competing institutions.
All contests shall start at noon local time. Other times may be established if approved by the committee.
The championship game will be played December 21, at noon ET at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Ala. and will be broadcast live on ESPN2 and WatchESPN.