Hartford, Conn. – Junior S Spencer Donahue (Naperville, Ill.) had a game-high nine tackles, a forced fumble, A tackle for loss, an interception, and two pass breakups, as the Trinity College Bantams posted their second-straight shutout, 24-0, against the visiting Williams College Ephs in New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) football action this afternoon on Jessee/Miller Field. Trinity, ranked No. 6 in New England, has outscored its opponents, 58-0, after two games this fall (34-0 win at Colby last week) and has not yielded a touchdown to the Ephs in eight quarters having blanked Williams, 38-0, in Williamstown in 2014. The Bantams ended a two-game losing skid at home with the home-opening victory and stay at the top of the NESCAC Standings at 2-0 with Amherst, Middlebury, and Tufts, while the Ephs drop to 1-1.
The Trinity defense held Williams to 176 total yards including just 90 yards on 32 pass attempts, while picking off two passes, and the Bantams scored once in each quarter. Sophomore QB Sonny Puzzo (West Caldwell, N.J.) connected with classmate Bryan Vieira (Hull, Mass.) on an 11-yard scoring pass on 3rd-and-8 for the game's first touchdown with 7:19 left in the first quarter, and junior Darrien Myers (North Andover, Mass.) returned a punt 68 yards to paydirt early in the second quarter. Trinity first-year K Eric Sachse (Jefferson, Mass.) booted his first career field goal late in the third quarter from 38 yards away to give the home squad a 17-0 advantage, and fellow rookie Max Chipouras (Longmeadow, Mass.) rounded out the scoring with a nine-yard touchdown scamper with 9:18 left in the contest.
On the game's third drive, Trinity took advantage of a short Eph punt that gave them the ball in Williams territory at the 48-yard line and marched quickly down the field. The Ephs stopped Trinity junior RB Nick Gaynor (West Hartford, Conn.) for a two-yard loss on 2nd-and-6 from their own nine-yard line thanks to a hit by James Howe (Charlotte, N.C.), but Puzzo found Vieira's back shoulder in the right corner of the end zone on the next play. Williams advanced to the Bantam 25-yard line late in the first quarter, but Eph RB Connor Harris (Memphis, Tenn.) was stopped an 4th-and-2 on a tackle in the middle of the line by junior NT Matt D'Andrea (Darien, Conn.). Myers received a Williams punt on the right side of the field at his own 32-yard line and broke free across the other side of the field for a touchdown with 12:37 left in the first half, and the Bantam defense stopped Williams on four consecutive plays in the red zone to maintain its 14-0 lead into the break. Junior S Patrick Dorsey (Lynn, Mass.) made the key stop against Williams RB Noah Sorrento (Norfolk, Mass.) on 4th-and-goal from the Trinity two-yard line after the Ephs had gone 64 yards on 17 plays.
The Trinity defense turned Williams over on downs twice more in the third quarter, as sophomore DE William Lochtefeld (Darien, Conn.) dropped Eph QB Mark Pomella (Marshfield, Mass.) for a 10-yard loss that knocked the visitors back from the Trinity 14-yard line to the 24-yard line on one drive, and senior DB Paul McCarthy (North Attleboro, Mass.) intercepted Pomella on a six-yard fade attempt into the end zone meant for senior WR Darrias Sime (Renton, Wash.) on another. Sachse's field goal came with 2:03 on the clock in the third quarter, and the Bantam defense did not surrender a first down in the final frame. Puzzo completed a 33-yard pass on 3rd-and-12 to Vieira to set Chipouras up for his second score in as many games and the final points of the game.
On the ground, Gaynor and Chipouras combined for 97 yards on 21 carries for Trinity, while Harris totaled 50 yards on 10 rushes for the Ephs. Puzzo finished 18-for-29 through the air for 165 yards and Vieira led all receivers with 101 yards on five grabs. Williams senior QB Austin Lommen (Minneapolis, Minn.) played the majority of snaps and completed 14 of his 28 pass attempts for 90 yards. Bantam sophomore LB Liam Kenneally (Reading, Mass.) had eight tackles, a sack, and a pass breakup, while first-year LB Shane Libby (Scituate, Mass.) added seven tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss. Russell Monyette (Suwanee, Ga.) notched six tackles and two tackles for loss with one pass breakup and Michael Berry (North Potomac, Md.) made six hits, broke up a pass, forced one fumble, and recovered a second which he returned 51 yards to the Trinity seven-yard line before Puzzo made a diving tackle to preserve the shutout. Bobby Webster (Calabasas, Calif.) averaged 42.1 yards on seven Eph punts, and the teams combined for 120 yards on penalties.