Sep 22, 2018
WILKES-BARRE, Pa. - Stevenson senior Dan Williams threw for 348 yards and a touchdown and senior linebacker Ashton Leschke had 10 tackles and a key defensive play late as the Mustangs downed King's (Pa.) 38-17 in Middle Atlantic Conference football at McCarthy Stadium Saturday.
FIRST QUARTER
- Stevenson (3-1, 2-0 MAC) scored first after the game's first three possessions ended in punts, as it engineered a nine-play, 87-yard drive capped by a five-yard Titus Johnson run to take a 7-0 lead with 2:22 left in the opening period. The drive chewed up 4:26.
- A 23-yard completion from Williams to Sebastien Vainqueur put the Mustangs at first-and-goal on the 7.
- Earlier in the drive, Williams completed a 21-yard pass to Chaz Lyles.
- King's (1-2, 0-1 MAC) held the ball for 9:33 in the first quarter and gained 67 yards to Stevenson's 77 but was unable to get on the board.
SECOND QUARTER
- Stevenson extended its lead to 14-0 at the 7:59 mark as Daqwan Hill rushed on fourth-and-goal at the 1 and dove under the line to cap a 12-play, 67-yard march that took 6:47.
- The Monarchs got on the board 1:19 before halftime as a three-yard rush by Jordan Downes ended a drive that took 1:39 as the hosts went 77 yards in five plays, including a 68-yard completion from Tommy Klock to Jayner Garospe.
- The Mustangs countered and went 65 yards in seven plays, capping the drive with a 21-yard pass from Williams to Ryan Stango with two seconds on the clock. Willams also had 15-yard passes to Lyles and Hill during the drive.
THIRD QUARTER
- The visitors had the first play of the second half and went 66 yards on seven plays to go up 21-7 at the 11:14 mark.
- On first-and-goal at the 8, Williams took it himself for his third rushing touchdown of the season to make it 28-7.
- King's advanced to the Stevenson 8 on the ensuing drive, but a 10-yard holding penalty pushed it back to the 18, and the Monarchs settled for a 27-yard field goal with 8:16 left in the quarter.
FOURTH QUARTER
- King's made it a two-score game 1:38 into the final frame, as a 10-yard run by Downes capped a 40-yard drive set up by a Mustang fumble late in the third quarter.
- After the two teams traded three-and-outs, Stevenson got the ball with 11:08 left on its own 8 and went 92 yards in 11 plays, with Johnson running in from the 1 for his second touchdown of the day with 6:35 left.
- Johnson had four carries for 35 yards during the drive.
- The Mustang defense came up with a takeaway on the next King's drive, with Leschke stripping Titus Nelson at midfield and recovering the fumble at the King's 46 with 5:48 left.
- Stevenson closed out the scoring as Gavin Locklear booted a 20-yard field goal with 46 seconds on the clock.
- King's got down to Stevenson's 38 on its final drive, but Brian Latham came up with an interception at the 3 as time expired.
NUMBERS AND NOTES
- With Leschke's forced fumble and recovery, the Mustang defense recorded a takeaway for the 59th straight game.
- Leschke finished with 10 tackles, including a tackle for a loss, and three pass breakups in addition to his forced fumble and recovery.
- Williams finished 31-41 through the air from 348 yards, completing passes to eight different receivers. It marked the eighth time in his career Williams has passed for at least 300 yards.
- Vainqueur had 10 catches from 121 yards, while Lyles had six grabs for 74 yards.
- Stango had five catches for 53 yards.
- Johnson finished with 52 yards on the ground on 12 carries.
- Locklear finished 5-5 on PAT tries in addition to his field goal.
- Hanif Jones and Mike Datu each recorded seven tackles, with Zach May, Izaiha Pitts and Jake Clayton each had six stops. Clayton had 1.5 tackles for a loss, including a sack.
- Stevenson outgained King's 443-281, limiting the Monarchs to just 126 yards passing.
- The guests racked up 29 first downs to 14 for King's.
- The Mustangs drew four penalties for 50 yards, while King's drew eight flags for 45 yards.
- The Mustangs have won three in a row for the first time since the 2016 campaign.
- Stevenson improved to 21-2 in September since the start of the 2013 season.
WHAT THEY SAID
WHAT'S NEXT
- Stevenson returns home after three straight games on the road to host defending MAC champion and No. 21 Delaware Valley next Saturday in a 1:00 kickoff at Mustang Stadium.
- Tickets for Saturday's game are available online.