Monday, October 20, 2003

MORAVIAN COLLEGE GREYHOUNDS, 3-3 (3-3 MAC)

LYCOMING COLLEGE WARRIORS, 4-1 (4-1 MAC)

1:00 p.m.; Saturday, October 25, 2003
Steel Field (c. 2,500); Bethlehem, PA

THE GAME: Moravian looks to win its second straight game versus Lycoming College in a Middle Atlantic Conference Game beginning at 1:00 p.m. The game with be the Greyhounds' annual Homecoming game.

THE COACHES: Scot Dapp (West Chester ’73) is in his 17th season at Moravian, with a career record of 103-66-1 (.609). He entered the season 45th in winning percentage among NCAA Division III active coaches. Dapp has earned Coach-of-the-Year honors from the MAC three times including Co-Coach of the Year in 1997 and has led the ’Hounds to two appearances in the NCAA playoffs and the ECAC Southeast Championship game in 2002.

Lycoming coach Frank Girardi (West Chester ’61) is in his 31st season at the school with an overall mark of 236-73-5 (.760).

THE SERIES: Saturday's meeting will be the 17th in the series with the Warriors owning an 11-5 lead. Lycoming has won the last two games the schools played with a 36-0 victory in Williamsport in 1998 and a 17-14 victory in Bethlehem in 1997. Moravian's last win in the series was back in 1994 with a 20-16 victory on the road.

LAST TIME THEY MET: In Williamsport in 1998, the Greyhounds suffered a 36-0 season opening loss at nationally ranked Lycoming College. The Warriors held Moravian to just 138 yards while gaining 470 yards in total offense. Moravian quarterback, Rob Petrosky completed 14 of 30 passes for 90 yards but was intercepted three times. Running back P.J. Jankowicz gained 34 yards on 12 attempts to lead the ground game. Punter Kevin Rosander was called on eight times and averaged 39 yards a kick. On the defensive side of the ball, Ken Gluck made his first start at linebacker a productive one with nine tackles (eight solo), a fumble recovery and an interception. Defensive back Gordy Frack and linebacker J.D. Rhinehart, also making his first career start at linebacker, each had a team-high 10 tackles.

LAST GAME: Freshman wide receiver Shawn Martell (Bethlehem, PA/Bethlehem Catholic HS) blocked a Wilkes University punt attempt for a safety with 1:36 remaining in the fourth quarter to lift Moravian to a 22-20 Middle Atlantic Conference win. Wilkes was unable to convert a third-and-six play from the Moravian 48-yard line just prior to the special teams miscue. The snap from center on the punt attempt sailed over the head of the punter. The punter retrieved the ball at his own 20-yard line and attempted to get off the boot. But, Martell was able to block the attempt and the ball sailed out of the end zone for a safety. The Greyhounds jumped out to a 7-0 lead on their first possession of the game. Facing a third-and-three from their own 42-yard line, freshman running back Chris Jacoubs (Fair Haven, NJ/Rumson-Fair Haven Regional HS) broke through the line of scrimmage and raced 57 yards to the Wilkes one-yard line. Three plays later, sophomore quarterback Jerry Venturino (Hopatcong, NJ/Hopatcong HS) rumbled around the right end and into the end zone with 12:07 left in the opening quarter. Senior kicker Josh Miller (Boyertown, PA/Boyertown HS) added the point after to give Moravian a 7-0 lead. Wilkes scored a touchdown on a 48-yard run after a fumble with 12:09 left in the half. The Colonels missed the point after and Moravian held a 7-6 lead. Moravian would add to their advantage with less than a minute to play in the first half. The Greyhounds marched 69 yards on 17 plays to get inside Wilkes territory. The Colonels defense stiffened however, and Miller came on to connect on a career long 28-yard field goal with 15 seconds left in the stanza to give Moravian a 10-6 lead at intermission. The Greyhounds extended their lead to 13-6 on their first possession of the third quarter. The Greyhounds put together a seven play, 51-yard drive that culminated in a 25-yard field goal by Miller with 10:25 left in the third. Wilkes would tie the game late in the third quarter and take a 20-13 lead with 9:32 left in the game. The Greyhounds used their air attack to knot game at 20-20. Venturino hit all three of his pass attempts during the drive, with all three of those completions finding senior wide receiver Jeff Lowry (Catawissa, PA/Southern Columbia HS). Lowry hauled in passes for nine and 17 yards that helped move the ball to the Wilkes 41. On second-and-eleven, Lowry raced down the left sideline and snatched a 41-yard touchdown toss with 3:42 left. Miller converted the point after attempt to tie the game at 20-20. Jacoubs finished with 23 carries for 136 yards to lead the Moravian offensive attack. Venturino hit on 11-of-17 pass attempts for 165 yards and one score. Lowry had six receptions for 89 yards. Senior free safety John Panikiewsky (Carteret, NJ/Carteret HS) had 11 tackles, while both senior defensive back Nate Pogue (Bethlehem, PA/Liberty HS) and junior linebacker Bill Carasia (Fair Haven, NJ/Rumson-Fair Haven Regional HS) had 10 stops.

SCOUTING LYCOMING: The Warriors were ranked as high as 11th in the nation and in the top 20 of all the Division III national polls last week prior to a 38-27 loss to Delaware Valley College. Junior quarterback Phil Mann leads Lycoming on the field, having completed 90 of 173 passes for 1,241 yards, nine touchdowns and seven interceptions. His top targets have been senior wide receiver Ricky Lannetti, who has 37 receptions for 443 yards and three scores, and senior tight end Sean Hennigar, who has caught 26 passes for 301 yards and two touchdowns. Senior wideout Brandon Johnson has added ten receptions for 223 yards and two scores. On the ground, junior running back Drew Corsilli has 246 yards on 73 carries while senior running back Robert Miller has 185 yards and four touchdowns on 45 attempts. Mann has carried the ball 40 times for 85 yards and two touchdowns. Lannetti is also the Warriors' returner, averaging 8.9 yards per punt return on 16 attempts and 20.4 yards on kickoff returns with 12 returns. Junior punter Dylan Dupuis is averaging 35.6 yards per punt with eight inside the 20-yard line and four fair caught. Freshman kicker Chris Schrader has made 16 of 17 extra-point attempts, and he is five of seven on field goal attempts with a long of 32 yards. Junior safety Nick Pinto leads the Warriors with three interceptions as Lycoming has intercepted ten passes. Senior linebacker Tim Schmidt has made a team-high 36 tackles with six for loss, one sack, two forced fumbles and seven pass break-ups. Senior linebacker Brian Connors has added 33 tackles with four for loss and interception while sophomore linebacker Luke Sterling has 29 tackles with four for loss, three sacks, an interception, four pass break-ups, four fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles. Senior defensive end Sean McGinley has also made 29 tackles including team highs of eight tackles for loss and six sacks, and he has one pass break-up.

YOUNG, BALANCED & EXPERIENCED ‘HOUNDS: Of the 81 players on the Moravian roster, 30 are freshmen, 28 are sophomores and 13 are juniors. There are ten seniors on this season’s squad, and the Greyhounds return 44 letterwinners and nine starters.

GREYHOUNDS IN THE MIDDLE ATLANTIC CONFERENCE: Beginning two seasons ago, the Middle Atlantic Conference became an 11-team conference instead of two separate leagues. Moravian was selected to finish seventh in the MAC Preseason Coaches Poll this season while Lycoming College was selected as the top team in the MAC.

THE MAC STATISTICAL RANKINGS: The Greyhounds are ranked sixth in the MAC in total defense, allowing 363.8 yards per game. The squad is fifth in passing defense at 194.8 yards per game and the defense is sixth in rushing yards allowed at 169.0. The Greyhounds lead the MAC in points allowed at 18.2 per game but the squad is ninth in points scored per game at 21.2. Offensively, Moravian is ninth in the MAC at 326.2 yards per game. The Greyhounds are ranked fifth in rushing offense at 179.3 yards per game and ninth in passing offense at 146.8 yards per game. Moravian is eighth in turnover margin with a -0.33 per game average as the Greyhounds have committed 11 turnovers while forcing nine turnovers. Individually, junior quarterback Jerry Venturino is fourth in the MAC in pass efficiency at 127.6 and he is ninth in passing yards per game at 104.8 while senior quarterback Will Seng (Allentown, PA/William Allen HS) is sixth in pass efficiency at 112.8 and tenth in passing yards per game at 71.4. Freshman tailback Chris Jacoubs is sixth in rushing yards per game at 83.8 yards a contest. Freshman running back Marc Panepinto (Perkiomenville, PA/Boyertown HS) is sixth in the MAC in kickoff return average at 20.9 yards per kickoff return. Senior wide receiver Kevin Miltenberger (Carlisle, PA/Carlisle HS) is seventh in punt return average at 8.0 yards per return. Senior Josh Miller is eighth in kick scoring at 3.8 points per contest, and he is tied for sixth in field goals per game at 0.50, first in field goal percentage at 75.0 percent (3 of 4) and seventh in extra-point percentage at 87.5 percent (14 of 16). Junior punter John McLain (Belvidere, NJ/Belvidere HS) is sixth in the MAC in punting average at 36.6 yards per punt. Senior cornerback Nate Pogue and senior safety John Panikiewsky are tied for fourth in the MAC in pass break-ups with eight.

THE QUARTERBACKS: Sophomore Jerry Venturino has completed 33 of 67 passes for 524 yards, five touchdowns and four interceptions. Venturino has been sacked five times this season and gained 38 yards on 27 carries. Senior Will Seng has completed 28 of 56 pass attempts for 357 yards with four touchdowns and four interceptions. Seng has been sacked six times this season, and he was run for 28 yards on 21 carries.

IN THE BACKFIELD: In the backfield, freshman tailback Chris Jacoubs leads the Greyhounds with 503 yards and three touchdowns on 92 carries. Jacoubs has surpassed the 100-yard mark in his last two games, the first two starts of his career, with 126 yards at King's College and 136 yards against Wilkes. Sophomore fullback Kevin Lukich (Ogdensburg, NJ/Wallkill Valley HS) has 95 yards on 29 carries. Junior tailback Cody Hendershot (Bangor, PA/Bangor HS) has added 73 yards on 17 carries while senior fullback Ray Burgan (Egg Harbor, NJ/Oakcrest HS) has 47 yards on 14 attempts. Freshman Marc Panepinto has added 33 yards on five rushes while freshman Earl Kunkel (Jim Thorpe, PA/Jim Thorpe HS) has 24 yards on five carries.

THE WIDE RECEIVERS: Senior wideout Jeff Lowry leads the Greyhounds with 17 receptions for 246 yards and four scores. Senior wide receiver Kevin Miltenberger has caught ten passes for 169 yards and a touchdown while freshman wideout Shawn Martell has six receptions for 155 yards and two scores. Sophomore fullback Kevin Lukich has five receptions for 39 yards. Junior tight end Chad Opdyke (Bath, PA/Northampton HS) has grabbed seven aerials for 92 yards and a touchdown. Sophomore wide receiver Russ Demko (Hellertown, PA/Saucon Valley HS) has three receptions for 52 yards. A total of 12 players have caught at least one pass for Moravian.

DEFENSIVE FRONT: Junior defensive end Shawn Nelson (Bethlehem, PA/Bethlehem Catholic HS) leads the Greyhounds up front defensively with 24 tackles, four tackles for loss and one and a half sacks. Sophomore defensive end Bryan Kohlbecker (Middletown, NJ/Middletown South HS) has added 21 tackles with two for loss, half a sack and two pass break-ups while junior nose tackle Kevin McLaughlin (Philadelphia, PA/Northeast Catholic HS) has 24 stops, five tackles for loss, one and a half sacks and one pass break-up. Sophomore defensive end Robert Stockley (Red Bank, NJ/Middletown South HS) has 13 tackles, a sack and three pass break-ups while senior defensive end Justin Moyer (Allentown, PA/Salisbury HS) has made six stops with a sack, a forced fumble and an interception returned for a touchdown against King's College.

THE LINEBACKER CORPS: Sophomore linebacker Richie Cline (Keyport, NJ/Union Beach HS) leads the Moravian defense with 43 tackles, a pass break-up, a forced fumble and a blocked kick. Senior linebacker Josh DiGiacomo (Zionsville, PA/Emmaus HS) has added 39 tackles; two tackles for loss, half a sack and one pass break-up. Senior linebacker Steve Maslanek (Stockholm, NJ/Vernon Township HS) has contributed 38 stops, seven tackles for loss, one and a half sacks, an interception and three pass break-ups while sophomore linebacker Steve Cline (Union Beach, NJ/Keyport HS) has 22 tackles with two for loss. Junior linebacker Bill Carasia has made 27 tackles and an interception. Sophomore linebacker Chad DiFelice (Pen Argyl, PA/Pen Argyl HS) has contributed six tackles while sophomore linebacker Eric Williams (Jermyn, PA/Lakeland HS) also has six tackles. Freshman Cliff Garr (Easton, PA/Notre Dame HS) has added four tackles.

THE DEFENSIVE BACKFIELD: Senior free safety John Panikiewsky leads the defensive backs with 40 tackles, two interceptions, one tackle for loss and eight pass break-ups. Senior cornerback Nate Pogue has made 32 tackles, two interceptions, two tackles for loss and eight pass break-ups this season while sophomore cornerback Tyler Chomik (Allentown, PA/Allentown Central Catholic HS) added 17 tackles and five pass break-ups. Junior safety Bill Skriletz (Coopersburg, PA/Southern Lehigh HS) has 16 tackles while freshman defensive back Israel Aguila (Bethlehem, PA/Freedom HS) made 13 tackles. Skriletz has one pass break-up on the year while Aguila has three pass break-ups this season. Junior Jim D’Agostino (Oakland, NJ/Ramsey HS) has 12 tackles with one tackle for loss while sophomore Gerald Weiss (Gilbertsville, PA/St. Pius X HS) made eight tackles with two for loss, a half a sack and a forced fumble.

KICKING GAME: Junior punter John McLain is averaging 36.6 yards on 30 attempts. Three of his punts have ended up as touchbacks, six others have been inside the 20-yard line and one has been fair caught. McLain had a long punt of 48 yards. Senior kicker Josh Miller made his first career field goal attempt, a 27-yard field goal, to open the scoring for the Greyhounds this season, and he is three-for-four on attempts this season with a long of 28 yards versus Wilkes University. He added 14 extra-points on 16 tries on the year.

SPECIAL TEAMS: Senior Kevin Miltenberger returned 11 punts for a total of 88 yards with a long return of 21 yards. Sophomore Tyler Chomik also has two-punt return for 20 yards with a long of 15 yards while sophomore John Miles (Warriors Mark, PA/Council Rock HS) has four punt returns for 47 yards with a long of 38 yards. Freshman Chris Jacoubs returned four kickoffs for 84 yards for the Greyhounds while freshman Marc Panepinto has seven kickoff returns for 146 yards with a long of 27 yards. Chomik has added six kickoff returns for 168 yards and a long of 47 yards while junior Cody Hendershot has two kickoff returns for 28 yards.

OVERTIME ‘HOUNDS: Moravian has played a total of seven overtime games since the NCAA instituted the rule for the 1996 season and is 5-2 all-time in the extra-session. The Greyhounds were 0-1 in overtime last year.

WINNING WAYS: Moravian had 11 consecutive winning seasons—all under Coach Scot Dapp, from 1987 to 1997 and has had 13 winning seasons in Dapp’s 16 years. The 11-straight winning seasons is the longest in school history. Dapp ranks third among Greyhound coaches in winning percentage.

ON THE AIRWAVES: For the seventh straight year, the Greyhounds football game will be aired on WGPA, Sunny 1100 AM. Phil May will be the play-by-play announcer with color commentary from Jim Wills.