Sep 24, 2023
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - Playing an uncommon Sunday afternoon game, the Washington and Lee University football team used a strong first quarter to take down the Apprentice School 28-9 in Newport News, Va.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter | 14-0 W&L
- The Builders forced an early turnover as Cameron Reed mishandled the ball which was jumped on by Chandler Perry. W&L got the ball right back as Will Mahmud stripped Mason Tatum on the second play of Apprentice's opening drive.
- Following the turnover, Anthony Crawford capped off a seven-play, 24-yard drive with a three-yard rushing touchdown to give the Generals a 7-0 lead.
- Both teams' next drives would stall but the Generals defense would force a punt which led to a seven-play, 67-yard touchdown drive to put the Blue and White up 14-0. Quarterback Stephen Murrin found Jacob Romero in the endzone for a five-yard score to end the first quarter.
Second Quarter | 21-3 W&L
- Washington and Lee's defense forced their third punt of the game on the first drive of the second half which led to a 24-yard return from Andrew Bland to get the Generals to their own 44 yard line.
- Giorgio Antonacci capped off a 13-play, 56-yard drive with a one yard rushing score to put the Generals up 21-0 with 6:58 left in the first half.
- The Builders started their next drive at their own 28 yard line after a 15 yard return from Jasiah Beacham. Apprentice marched down to the Generals eight yard line before Jeremiah Morgan sent a field goal through the uprights to cut the Generals lead to 18.
- The Generals drove down the field in the final three minutes and with three seconds on the clock, W&L looked for Arturo Ramirez to give them a 24-3 lead heading into halftime. Ramirez's field goal attempt from 41 yards out was wide right, sending the Generals to the break with a 21-3 lead.
Third Quarter | 21-9 W&L
- Apprentice received the opening kickoff of the second half and marched 44-yards on 13-plays but would settle for a field goal after two-straight incompletions.
- The first drive of the second half for the Generals started slow as Josh Garcia rushed for one yard before Murrin was forced out of bounds for a two-yard loss, forcing a punt.
- The Builders would have to settle for a field goal once again as their ten-play, 66-drive was halted by two incompletions. Jeremiah Morgan drilled a 27-yard field to bring the score to 21-9 in favor of the Generals.
Fourth Quarter | 28-9 W&L
- After the Builders stopped the Generals on fourth and one, Charlie Fleming intercepted a Mason Tatum pass on the first play of their next drive to set the General's up with great field position.
- Murrin connected with Cameron Reed for a 49-yard gain before Marcus Payne punched it in from three-yards out to seal the 28-9 win.
W&L GAME NOTES
- W&L improved to 2-1 on the season before heading into conference play.
- The Generals produced 340 yards of total offense with 184 yards on the ground and a season-high 156 yards in the air.
- W&L rushed 54 times with 3.4 yards per rush while scoring three of their four touchdowns on the ground.
- The Blue and White were six of 13 on third downs while going 50% (1 of 2) on fourth downs. They scored on all four trips to the red zone.
- The Generals defense held the Apprentice offense to their worst performance this season while recovering a fumble and intercepting a pass. The defensive line provided constant pressure as they sacked the Builders' QB three times.
APPRENTICE GAME NOTES
- The Builders fall to 1-3 on the season.
- Apprentice produced a season-low 211 yards of total offense, throwing for 129 yards and rushing for 82. The Builders averaged 3.5 yards per play but their seven penalties for 57-yards slowed down their offense.
- Apprentice was three of 14 on third downs while being one of two on fourth down.
- The Builders defense forced and recovered two fumbles while limiting the W&L offense to their worst rushing performance of the season.
TOP PERFORMERS
- Murrin went seven of 13 for 156-yards and one touchdown while rushing for 18 yards. Mason Tatum of Apprentice was ten of 26 for 129 yards with one interception.
- Romero led all rushers with 76 yards on 19 carries while catching two passes for 12 yards and a touchdown.
- Payne rushed five times for 41 yards and a touchdown. Lawrence Reed led the Builders with 54 yards on nine attempts while Kameron Jackson rushed nine times for 43 yards.
- Bland caught two passes for 64 yards while Reed hauled in one catch for 49 yards. Ta'Kevion Petty led the Builders with three catches for 50 yards.
- Benny Nena of Apprentice led all players with 11 tackles, ten solo and one assisted, while Syncere Hawkins recorded eight tackles and one for a loss.
- Jack Johnson led the Generals with seven solo tackles while also breaking up a pass. Johny McGrath, Uno Christopher, Charlie Fleming, Jalen Todd, Nathan Unger and Will Knight all had three tackles for W&L. McGrath led the Generals with 1.5 tackles for loss.
- Unger, McGrath and Christopher each recorded sacks for the Generals.
UP NEXT
- The Generals make a trip to Danville, Va. to kick-off Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) play on Saturday, Sept. 30 against Averett University. The opening kickoff is set for 5 p.m. at Frank R. Campbell Stadium.