By James Wagner
Director of Athletic Communications
COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – Ursinus College got 235 yards rushing on Saturday, as the Bears (6-1, 5-1 Centennial) defeated Susquehanna (1-6, 1-5 Centennial) 44-14 on Homecoming at Patterson Field.
The Bears set up a showdown with nationally-ranked and Centennial leader Johns Hopkins for next Saturday at home.
As for Saturday's game, senior running back Taylor Paul (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphin) won the 58th annual Kenneth R. Walker Trophy as he rushed for game-high 127 yards on 11 carries. The trophy is given to the outstanding Ursinus player in the Homecoming game. Paul scored on a 35-yard run in the third quarter.
Senior quarterback Kevin Monahan (East Windsor, N.J./Highstown) threw for 166 yards and one score, while junior tight end Safi Hasseeb (Oakland, Calif./Alameda) caught a game-high five passes for 27 yards.
Defensively, junior linebacker James Roccograndi (Dallas, Pa./Dallas) had seven tackles and a sack.
For Susquehanna, the Crusaders were led by senior running back Ian Richardson who had 101 yards on 22 carries. Freshman quarterback Nick Crusco threw for 80 yards on 12-for-23 passing, with 45 yards going to senior wide receiver Denzell Walker.
Junior linebacker Jim Barry had a game-high 16 tackles for the Crusaders, who dropped to 0-5 against the Bears since joining the Centennial as an associate in 2010.
Ursinus scored the first 24 points of the game, staring with a 13-play, 74-yard scoring drive in the first quarter capped by a 9-yard touchdown pass from Monahan to junior fullback Nick Pustizzi (Pottsgrove, N.J./Arthur P. Shalick) with 8:39 left.
The Bears took a 14-0 lead with 1:02 left in the quarter on a field goal from junior kicker Eric Boyer (Fort Washington, Pa./Upper Dublin) from 37 yards out.
Sophomore running back Corey Kelly (Conshohocken, Pa./Plymouth-Whitemarsh) scored his first of two touchdowns with 1:43 left in the second quarter to give the Bears a 17-0 halftime lead.
In the third quarter, senior defensive back Matt Glowacki (Spring City, Pa./Spring-Ford), who was also named the Homecoming King at halftime, doubled his winnings as he ran back a Susquehanna punt for 66-yards and a 24-0 lead with 14:14 left in the quarter.
Susquehanna got on the board with 6:02 left in the quarter when Richardson caught a 1-yard pass from Crusco for a 24-7 Ursinus lead.
The Bears answered back with a 35-yard run from Paul for a 31-7 lead with 1:08 left in the third, with Kelly scoring from 1-yard out with 10:36 left in the game and a 38-7 lead.
Freshman James Hickey (Delran, N.J./Holy Cross) ran from 7-yards out with 4:35 left to end the Ursinus scoring at 44-7 with 4:35 left, while junior running back Kris Stern scored from 1-yard out with 1:38 left to end the Susquehanna scoring at 44-14.
With the win, Ursinus achieved a winning season for the sixth straight time, which continues to set new school records.