Four Teams Win on Eve of Conference Play

Click to read the ODAC Football Report: Week 3

FOREST, Va. --- Four teams found their school names in the win column by the end of Saturday as conference members ready for the beginning of league play next week.  Shenandoah University will be at Bridgewater College to open the conference slate in a contest that also marks the first ODAC football game for the Hornets since becoming a full-time league member in July.

Each ODAC school now has at least one victory as Guilford College was among the victors.  The Quakers trailed hosted Averett 21-20 at the half, but 25 second-half points spurred GC to a 45-35 triumph to move its record to 1-2 on the season.  Quarterback Matt Pawlowski, this week's ODAC Offensive Player of the Week, had a hand in four of GC's six touchdowns as he threw for a career-high three scores and iced the game with a 6-yard TD run with a little more than three minutes to play.

With Bridgewater and Hampden-Sydney College both idle this week (scheduled byes), Emory & Henry College was the only member of the ODAC's undefeated trio in action.  The Wasps stayed perfect in 2012, although it took a little doing.  Trailing 20-10 at the half, the E&H defense pitched a shutout in the second 30 minutes, freeing up the offense on the way to a 34-20 win over Methodist University.

Randolph-Macon College and Washington and Lee University enjoyed the win column for the second straight week.  The Yellow Jackets went down 7-0 early against Bethany College (W.Va.), but that would be the only time they trailed as R-MC exploded for 510 yards of offense, including 281 on the ground with a pair of 100-yard rushing efforts from Will McGhee (148) and Drake Sanders (116).  McGhee finished with 202 all-purpose yards with 41 receiving and 13 return yards added to his rushing total.  Quarterback Zac Naccarato was efficient with four TD passes on 15-of-18 passing in R-MC's 49-33 victory.

Overall balanced offensive output and resilient defense was the name of the game for Washington and Lee as the Generals rang up their first win over a ranked opponent since 2010 with a 34-16 over #23 Centre College.  W&L pounded the turf for 338 yards rushing, but also boasted a potent passing game with a pair of scores through the air.  W&L led from the first whistle in its 34-16 win over Centre College (Ky.) as Brett Murray ran for 120 yards and a touchdown, Luke Heinsohn carried in for two scores, and Alex Evans caught a pair of touchdown passes.  Mitchell Thompson, this week's ODAC Defensive Player of the Week, paced a solid defensive performace from W&L with 10 tackles that included nine solo stops and a tackle-for-a-loss on a fourth down play inside the Generals 25-yard line to preserve a 21-10 halftime advantage.

Catholic University got a strong rushing performance from Mike Pitsenberger as the junior back collected 127 yards on just 13 carries.  But an 0-of-8 showing on third down hurt the Cardinals against a tough Carnegie Mellon University defense.  CMU won the contest 35-17.

Shenandoah saw its record dip to 1-2 with a 20-7 loss to Christopher Newport University.  The SU offense had some trouble getting on track as Andrew Smith's 47-yard touchdown run would be their only score of the game.  The Hornets' defense had a solid evening in limiting CNU to just 71 yards rushing on 41 carries.  Cornerback Brandon Martin posted his third straight game with an interception, tying him at the top of the ODAC charts (Jake Pelton, W&L).

For a complete look at the opening week of ODAC football, view the ODAC Football Report: Week 3.  Don’t forget to become a fan of the ODAC on Facebook.  You can also follow the ODAC on Twitter at @odacathletics.  Check out the ODAC's YouTube channel.

This Week's Results