SELLINSGROVE, Pa. - The Bridgewater College football team fell to No. 4 Susquehanna 56-17 on Saturday.
Bridgewater forced a Susquehanna punt to start the game after a sack from
Aaron Nice on third down. BC's first drive stalled out after an early penalty, but the BC special teams unit did its job as the River Hawks fumbled the punt return and
Damari Roberts fell on it in SU territory. A personal foul against Susquehanna on the first play of the drive assisted the Eagles, and BC worked he ball all the way to the one-yard line twice. A pair of false starts backed Bridgewater up, and they settled for an
Augustin Miguel 23-yard field goal to get them on the board and take a 3-0 lead 10 minutes in.
The BC defense forced another Susquehanna punt thanks to a
Shalin Green sack on third down. BC wasted no time adding to the lead as
Jaicere Bateman Connected with
Ian Browne on third down for a 61-yard touchdown pass. Following the Miguel PAT, BC took a 10-0 lead over the No. 4 team in the country just before the end of the opening stanza.
Susquehanna started its next drive behind the sticks after a penalty on first down, but the home side ground out a lengthy drive capped off by a one-yard touchdown pass. The PAT was true to slice the lead to 10-7. BC went for it on fourth down deep in their own end and was stopped at fourth-and-one, handing SU a short field. The River Hawks again methodically worked their way down the short field as Drew Hutchins punched it in from a yard out as the home team took a 14-10 lead after the good PAT. After a BC turnover, Susquehanna struck again as a 19-yard touchdown pass from Josh Ehrlich made it 21-10 after the PAT. BC got the ball back before the end of the half, but was forced to punt to send the contest to the intermission at a 21-10 SU lead.
BC got the ball out of the break, but went nowhere as a loss on the ground put the Eagles behind the chains. After a punt, it was another mythodical Susquehanna drive that led to a 13-yard toss by Ehrlich to make it 28-10 after the kick was true. The Eagles ended the 28-point run for the River Hawks as Bateman Connected with
Tate Leach on first down to set the tone. A deep connection from Bateman to Browne put BC at the Susquehanna 22-yard line, and a pass interference penalty put the Eagles in the red zone. Bateman called his own number to cap off the series with a seven-yard rushing touchdown. After Miguel's kick was true, BC cut the lead to 28-17.
The teams traded punts to end the third frame, but Susquehanna opened the fourth with a 38-yard rushing score. The PAT was good to make it 35-17, and the River Hawks padded on with three more scores after punts by the Eagles as the SU defense locked in as advertised. Susquehanna capped off the run with a rushing score with 4:03 to go to make it 56-17.
Bateman led BC with 145 yards through the air and was the Eagles' leading rusher with 17 yards and a score. Browne had another game with triple-digit receiving as he racked up 111 yards on five catches and a touchdown. Green and Nice each tallied a sack for the Eagles as
Oscar Whitely led BC with 11 total tackles. nice made eight solo stops including two behind the line.
The River Hawks were fueled by 325 yards on the ground compared to just 33 for BC. Ehrlich tallied four passing scores and a rushing TD for SU.
The Eagles are back in action next Saturday as they host another nationally ranked program, as No. 19 Randolph-Macon visits. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m.
