GETTYSBURG, Pa. - The Dickinson football team rushed for 333 and threw for 243 as they used a balanced offensive attack to pick up their first win of the season knocking off Gettysburg College 35-9 at Musselman Stadium in the Battle for the Bucket.
Dickinson allowed Gettysburg to get on the plus-side of the 50 on their opening drive, but a delay of game penalty pushed the home side out of a position to go for it leading to a punt. The Red and White took over on their own 20 and on the first play
Diante Ball picked up four of his 277 rushing yards on the afternoon. Ball then carried for nine, before
Matt Maiona hit
Princeton Douglass for 29 down to the GC43. Two plays later Ball found paydirt going right up the middle for a 31-yard score (
Matt Moroz kick). After an empty drive for the Bullets DC went back to work on the DC27. It would take just one play for the Devils to make it 14-0 as Maiona found Douglass for a 73-yard strike (Moroz kick) with 3:14 left in the first. A pass from Rocco Abdinoor to Ryan McAndrew put the ball at the DC49 on the last play of the quarter. Two runs by the quarterback and a 22-yard completion to Nick Riggio put the home team in position for a field goal on fouth-and-six at the DC17. Doug Cummings stepped up and knocked it through from 34 cutting the margin to 14-3 early in the second.
After both sides were unable to score on their next chances, Dickinson had first down on their own 43 with 6:34 left in the half. A Maiona pass to
Devlin McCool, followed by a qb keeper and a roughing the passer penalty put the rock on the GC34. Four consecutive rushes by the duo of Ball and Maiona setup third-and-five at the GC18. Ball would then find the endzone again, but this time through the air as he hooked up with Maiona for 18-yards (Moroz kick) giving DC a 21-3 edge at the break.
Dickinson went three-and-out on their opening drive of the third and gave the ball back to Gettysburg on their 45-yardline with 12:26 left. Abdinoor immediately found McAndrew for 43-yards to bring life to the Bullets sideline at first-and-ten on the DC12. Three plays later the QB hit Sebastian Gibbs for the td (two-point conversation failed). The Red and White would be stopped on fourth down at the GC21 to stall their ensuing drive. However, they got the ball back three plays later when new signal caller Mason Stolarik was intercepted by
Jason Hollinger halting the GC march. Three rushes by Ball of four, three, and 18, aided by a completion to
Johnny Knight (18yds) and a seven-yard scamper for
Adam Smith brought DC to the GC45 heading into the fourth. Once again though a Dickinson drive was stalled by a failed fourth down try as the Bullets went back to work at their own 43.
The home team thought they had cut into the deficit with a 27-yard strike from Abdinoor to McAndrew, but a holding and unsportsmanlike penalty canceled the score and moved the ball back to the GC48 forcing a punt to the DC8. The visitors needed all of one play to add onto their lead as Ball continued his huge day with a 92-yard touchdown run (Moroz kick) extending the lead to 28-9. On the following Devils drive Ball carried for gains of seven, seven, eight, and 25 to the GC41. Then after a nine-yard rush for Douglass, Ball was back on the board as he took it to the house from 36-yards away (Moroz kick) to set the 35-9 final.
Defensively,
Jeremy Reid led the team with a team-high nine tackles (six solo), while
Chris Klem and
Neville Krueger added seven and six respectively.
Bram Leys and
Tanner Long each had five tackles.
Up Next
Dickinson (1-2) finally will have their home opener next Saturday at 1pm when the Red and White will host nationally-ranked Susquehanna University in a Centennial Conference clash on Homecoming.
