Football cruises past Moravian

The Hopkins Football team traveled up North for a Saturday afternoon meeting with the Moravian Greyhounds, hoping that their first trip to Pennsylvania would be successful. Their main job was to keep focused on the task at hand, rather than letting their trip to Moravian make them arrogant and overly confident heading into the important conference game. The Jays put any thought of a trap game away as quickly as possible, racking up a total of 391 offensive yards and a 38-0 lead at the half. The Jays continued to dominate in the second half, sending a big message to all competitors in the Centennial as they dismantled Moravian 52-14, bringing their season record to 3-0.

The Jays got on the board early after a one-yard touchdown by star runningback JD Abbott, capping off a 64 yard drive. After Moravian was unable to respond, senior quarterback Robbie Matey doubled the deficit for the Greyhounds by punching in a two-yard run to put a nice finishing touch on their four-play, 39 yard drive. Although the first quarter was a success, it was nothing in comparison to the second quarter. Freshman Stuart Walters started the offensive onslaught with a rushing touchdown, followed by consecutive scores by sophomore Brandon Cherry and Abbott. To finish off their first half scoring, Nick Campbell booted a 27 yard field goal to take a 38-0 lead. On their first six drives of the game, the Jays scored five touchdowns and one field goal.

In the second half, Hopkins proved to be just as relentless in their pursuit of victory right out of the gates. As the half began, the Greyhounds’ comeback effort hit a quick dead end. On the second play of the half, Ryan Rice snagged an errant pass from the Moravian quarterback and took it to the house to extend the Blue Jays lead to 45. That play represented a forgettable afternoon for the Greyhounds; for Hopkins though, it was an exclamation point on a focused and determined effort. Moravian was able to scrounge two touchdowns against the formidable Hopkins defense following Rice’s interception return. With 45 points already on the board with a little more than nine minutes left in the third, freshman Dionisio Roman joined the scoring brigade for the Jays after rumbling across the goal line for a six-yard score. Finally, the afternoon came to a close, with Hopkins rolling to an impressive victory by the score of 52-14.

Matey led the offense with his efficient and consistent effort, completing 15-20 passes for 127 yards and rushing for 47 more with a touchdown. Four different Hopkins backs collected rushing touchdowns against the Greyhounds: Abbott (2), Walters, Cherry and Roman. Cherry led the group with his 87 rushing yards. Taking over for Matey in the second half, Braden Anderson added 109 yards of his own through the air, going 8-13 passing.

As impressive as the offense was, the defense was equally as remarkable. Moravian gained a grand total of 87 yards on 34 plays against the daunting Blue Jays starting defense. Rushing the ball seemed to be the achilles heel for Moravian, as they averaged a mere one yard per carry on 17 attempts for 22 total rushing yards. Special teams also had a fantastic day for the Jays. Freshman kicker Nick Campbell nailed a 27 yard field goal, while senior punter Richie Carbone was able to help his defense out with a punt that pinned the Greyhounds at the one yard line.

When asked about Saturday’s effort, Matey was pleased with the overall team win. “It's always nice to get a win against a conference opponent," Matey said. "Offense, defense and special teams really clicked on Saturday. The offense always starts with our offensive line paving the way up front on the ground and led to us being so successful on Saturday.” When asked about the season going forward, Matey said the gang is right on track. “It's always great to be 3-0 but we must always be ready for our next challenge. We can never get complacent,” Matey said.

Abbott offered similar sentiments following his productive day on the gridiron. “Saturday was a solid team win and it really seemed like things were clicking on both sides of the ball,” Abbott said. “It's great to start the season 3-0 but we have a big challenge in Muhlenberg coming up this Saturday.”

Hopkins returns to the turf of Homewood Field in a key Centennial Conference matchup against Muhlenberg Saturday. The #13 ranked Jays will host the Mules at 2 p.m. as they try to tighten their grip on the top spot of the Centennial Conference.