Football | 9/18/2021 10:24:00 PM
UTICA, NY - The Utica College football team needed a late surge, and it got one. Down by four points in the fourth quarter, quarterback Sonny Badyna tossed two passing touchdowns to wide receiver Matt Brantley, and the Pioneers walked away with a 37-28 win over visiting Western New England in a non-conference football game at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium.
The win improves Utica to 3-0, while dropping Western New England to 2-1. The visiting Golden Bears were receiving votes in the D3Football.com poll.
It was an offense-oriented contest, with Utica totaling 492 yards of offense to Western New England's 412.
Badyna finished the day with a career-high 368 yards and four touchdowns on 15-of-30 passing. He rushed for an additional score. Three Utica backs and receivers went over the century mark in yardage. Brantley finished with 135 yards receiving and two touchdowns. Wide receiver Nate Palmer had a team-high 154 receiving yards and a touchdown. Running back Jamarious Morgan had 100 net rushing yards for the best rushing performance of the year by a Utica back.
The Utica defense was helmed up by Kwasi Addo's 11 tackles. Daryl Savage had eight tackles, two of which went for a loss. John Stroughn had six tackles, and Devin Bryant had six solo tackles to go with a tackle for loss and a pass breakup. Jemel Smith and Terrance Toussaint each broke up three passes for a defense that registered nine breakups on the night. Anthony McDonald had an interception.
The Golden Bears opened strong by engineering a nine-play, 75 yard drive. That drive nearly fizzled when defensive back Dan Amady cleanly intercepted the ball deep down field, but the play was overruled by a roughing the passer flag at the line of scrimmage. The visitors quickly bounced back from their miscue with a 25 yard touchdown toss from Bryce Karstetter to Steven Fedorchak. The kick was good, and the Golden Bears led 7-0 with 11:44 to go in the first quarter.
The Pioneers rallied to get points on the board on the ensuing drive. The offense was energized by a 36 yard return from Matt Brantley, and he further helped the cause by catching a 24 yard pass from Badyna. That set the table for a 21-yard field goal by Maki Medici, and UC trimmed the deficit to 7-3 with 7:08 to go in the first quarter.
The Golden Bears picked up where they left off on their next series. An 18-yard Flea Flicker pass to Fedorchak gave the visiting offense a jolt on a second 75-yard scoring drive. The series was finished off by a 23 yard passing score from Karstetter to Adam Razza, and the Golden Bears snagged a 14-3 lead.
With a double digit deficit forming, the Pioneers offense acted quickly to get back in the groove. Fueled by an incredible diving 32-yard catch from Palmer, and some tough running by Jamarious Morgan, the Pioneers traversed 69 yards in just 2:38. A bow was put on the drive when Badyna rushed in on a 10 yard quarterback keeper, and the deficit was trimmed to 14-10 with 2:03 to go in the quarter.
The UC defense forced the Bears to punt to begin the second quarter, and that enabled the Pioneers to drive down the field again. The Pioneers finished off a five-play, 92 yard scoring drive in style as Elijah Parker made a brilliant basket catch on a 39 yard touchdown pass from Badyna, and the Pioneers jumped ahead 17-14 to open the second quarter.
Western New England scored the next five points to re-take the lead. The Golden Bears notched a safety, then added on a 22 yard field goal by Matt Gilbert to lead 19-17 with 2:54 before the break.
Defensive fireworks ruled the day in the remainder of the half, and the Pioneers got a huge Western New England turnover to overcome one of their own and get into the break with nothing further on the board. Western New England's Ryan Carlson intercepted Badyna in dangerous field position, with the Golden Bears standing at the Utica 25. On the very next play, Anthony McDonald took the football back at the Utica 7 to hold the deficit at two points going into the half.
At the break, Western New England had a 279-193 edge in total offense. Addo had ten first half tackles for the Pioneers.
After receiving the second half kickoff, it took just four plays for the Pioneers to jump back into the drivers' seat. Persistence in the passing game was the key. Moments after a Badyna pass narrowly missed the outstretched fingertips of Palmer on a wheel route, the two connected on a deep pass the second time, and Palmer slipped away from tacklers to take it the distance for a 51 yard touchdown and a 24-19 lead.
Western New England drew closer before the end of the third quarter, but some key plays by the defensive backfield prevented the Golden Bears from taking the lead. After the visitors marched into the red zone, Utica got two key pass breakups, one from Jamel Smith and the other from Devin Bryant, and the Golden Bears had to settle for a 21 yard field goal, which trimmed the lead to 24-22.
Both teams were forced to punt to begin the fourth quarter, but as the defenses established order, chaos emerged. Utica forced a Western New England three-and-out, and got an electrifying 48 yard punt return by Palmer that was called back on a hold away from the play. Utica was quickly forced into a three-and-out of their own, but got a new lease on life when the return was muffed by Western New England, putting the Pioneers deep into Golden Bear territory. The ensuing field goal try went wide, and the Golden Bears proceeded to embark on an 83 yard touchdown drive, capped off by a 10 yard aerial connection from Karstetter to Razza to take a 28-24 lead.
It was at that point that the Pioneers threw down the proverbial hammer. The offense returned and put together an energized drive where all facets contributed. Jamarious Morgan rushed for 41 yards on the drive, including a 32 yard sprint. Tim Hogan contributed with an 11 yard gain and a first down. That all set the stage for Badyna to flight a 23 yard touchdown pass to Brantley, and the Pioneers took the lead for good by a 30-28 score.
The duo of Badyna and Brantley would join forces again to ice the game. Utica needed an explosive play on a pivotal 3rd down, with five yards to go in their own territory. With the run game's momentum being slowed by a loaded tackle box from the Western New England defense, offensive coordinator Joe Gerbino dialed up the deep ball. Badyna hit Brantley on a deep pattern for a 67 yard score, and the defense took care of the rest to put the finishing touches on a largely close contest.
The Pioneers will play another home game on Saturday, September 25th, as they welcome nationally-ranked Union College.