/seasons/2015/contrib/20151010d8usjc

Defense Locks Down Mount Ida 34-14

More news about: Castleton

CASTLETON, Vt. – The Spartan defense pitched a shutout and held Mount Ida to just three first downs through the first three quarters as they built a 31-0 lead before finishing with a 34-14 victory to earn their first conference win of the year on Saturday afternoon at Spartan Stadium. 

Castleton dominating the line of scrimmage throughout, accumulating 414 yards of offense, including 230 rushing yards as the team improved to 3-2 and 1-1 in the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference. The Mustangs totaled 175 yards of offense, after having just 40 at the half, as they dropped to 1-4 and 1-1 in the ECFC. The game was marred slightly by penalties as the teams combined to accumulate 31 penalties for 225 yards. 

The Castleton defense held Mount Ida to 1-for-11 on third down and just 21 minutes of total possession while picking off three passes and recording a pair of sacks. Darren Callan had a team-high eight tackles while Brett Denning added six stops, one sack and two tackles for a loss. In his first career start on defense, Tyler Higley picked off a pair of passes and has two pass breakups. 

 George Busharis was efficient behind center for the Spartans, going 19-for-26 for 184 yards and one touchdown while throwing a pair of interceptions. Soren Pelz-Walsh caught six passes for 65 yards and a score while Makai Hawkins had six receptions for 56 yards and two rushes for 24. Moe Harris anchored the ground game, recording 27 of the team's program-record 53 rushes, for 161 yards and a pair of scores. The freshman also caught three passes for 44 yards. 

Freshman Jack Sheehan had trouble against the Castleton defense, completing 9 of 23 passes for 64 yards with a single touchdown and three picks. Faouzi Talabi caught four passes for 22 yards and score while Melquawn Pinkney rushed for 104 yards on 11 attempts, including a 53-yard touchdown scamper in the fourth. 

Mount Ida received the ball to start the contest, but on third down was picked off on a one-handed catch by Mark Alberque. The Spartans took advantage and marched down to the Mustangs' six-yard line in eight plays, setting up a six-yard rush by Harris for his first touchdown. 

In the second quarter and starting on its own 32-yard line, Castleton moved down the field and pushed the lead to 14-0 on a one-yard touchdown rush by Corey Brimmer with 6:58 left in the half.  

On the ensuing kickoff, Joshua Stearns hit a line drive kick which bounced off a Mustang player and the Callan recovered the ball at the Mount Ida 31-yard line. The Spartans used six plays to stretch their lead to 21-0, with Harris running between the tackles for a five-yard score with 4:37 remaining. 

The Mustangs took over on their own 35-yard line but two plays later gave it back to Castleton asJay Morgan recovered a fumble at the 34-yard line. The Spartans burned some clock and pushed their lead to 24-0 on a 26-yard field goal by Bobby Lineberger with 11 seconds left. 

In the third period Castleton stretched its advantage to 31-0 at 8:04, as Busharis found Pelz-Walsh in the back corner of the endzone, with the wide receiver getting a foot down and securing the ball before being pushed out of bounds. 

Mount Ida got on the board early in the fourth quarter as Pinkney burst through the line for a 53-yard touchdown run on second down. Matt Greenman ran in the two-point conversion to make it 31-8 with 12:27 left. 

Bobby Lineberger then connected on a 26-yard field goal with 4:21 left and the Mustangs tacked on a late three-yard touchdown pass to provide the 34-14 final. 

Castleton is back home next Saturday as the team hosts Gallaudet at 12 pm.

Sep. 20: All times Eastern
Final
at Albion 25, Rose-Hulman 17
Video
Final
Westfield State 48, at Dean 6
Video Box Score
Final
Plymouth State 42, at Bridgewater State 21
Box Score
Final
at Framingham State 14, Mass-Dartmouth 10
Video Box Score
Final
at Fitchburg State 48, New England College 0
Video Video Box Score
Final
Muhlenberg 26, at Wilkes 18
Video
Final
at Carnegie Mellon 17, Berry 9
Video Box Score Recap Photos
Final
Sewanee 33, at N.C. Wesleyan 0
Video Photos
Final
University of New England 35, at Vermont State Castleton 8
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Western New England 48, Worcester State 13
Video Box Score
Final
at Endicott 41, SUNY-Maritime 7
Video Video Box Score
Final - OT
at RPI 30, Brockport 24
Video Preview Box Score Recap Live stats
Final
Delaware Valley 35, at Albright 28
Video
Final
Wayland Baptist 21, at Howard Payne 18
Video
Final
UW-Whitewater 26, at Mary Hardin-Baylor 6
Video Box Score
Final
Bluffton 37, at Olivet 28
Box Score
Final
UW-River Falls 65, at Belhaven 0
Video Box Score
Final
Alfred 35, at St. Lawrence 13
Video
Final
at Hobart 20, Utica 17
Video Box Score
Final
Salve Regina 24, at William Paterson 12
Video
Final
Stevenson 35, at Alvernia 13
Video Box Score
Final
Hanover 24, at Alma 23
Video Box Score
Final
at Trinity (Conn.) 30, Bates 13
Video
Final
Misericordia 21, at Widener 7
Video
Final
at Hope 31, Mount St. Joseph 28
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Western Connecticut 55, Gettysburg 21
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at DePauw 35, Kenyon 14
Video Box Score Recap
Final
Dickinson 52, at Lycoming 29
Video Box Score
Final
at Amherst 23, Hamilton 13
Video Box Score
Final - OT
Anna Maria 33, at Massachusetts Maritime 27
Video Box Score
Final
at Waynesburg 35, Hiram 27
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Rochester 28, St. John Fisher 21
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Gallaudet 39, Averett 30
Video Box Score Photos
Final
at Franklin and Marshall 42, Catholic 7
Video Box Score
Final
Ursinus 35, at Moravian 7
Video Box Score
Final
Johns Hopkins 40, at Susquehanna 22
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at LaGrange 20, Centre 6
Video
Final
at Hampden-Sydney 42, Shenandoah 7
Video Box Score Recap
Final
WPI 15, at Husson 13
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Trine 35, Franklin 27
Video
Final
at Union 31, Morrisville State 7
Video
Final
at King's 27, FDU-Florham 21
Video Box Score
Final
Southern Virginia 42, at Keystone 0
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Lebanon Valley 24, Eastern 21
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Middlebury 31, Bowdoin 10
Video
Final
at Williams 38, Colby 0
Video Box Score
Final
at UW-Platteville 28, Springfield 12
Video
Final
at John Carroll 63, Oberlin 0
Video
Final
at Amherst 23, Hamilton 13
Box Score
Final
Baldwin Wallace 44, at Capital 7
Video Recap
Final
at Muskingum 56, Wilmington 49
Video Box Score Recap Photos
Final
at Coast Guard 92, Nichols 60
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at UW-La Crosse 31, Wayne St. (Mich.) 22
Video Box Score
Final
Ithaca 65, at Hilbert 3
Video Box Score
Final
Randolph-Macon 27, at Bridgewater 3
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at McDaniel 24, Juniata 7
Video Box Score
Final
at Norwich 63, Maine Maritime 0
Video Box Score
Final
Wabash 34, at Wooster 7
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Illinois Wesleyan 42, Elmhurst 6
Video Box Score
Final
St. John's 59, at Hamline 0
Video Box Score
Final
St. Norbert 59, at Concordia-Chicago 28
Video Box Score
Final
Bethel 41, at Gustavus Adolphus 7
Video Box Score
Final
at St. Olaf 17, Concordia-Moorhead 16
Box Score Recap
Final
at UW-Oshkosh 38, Roosevelt 21
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at North Central (Ill.) 62, Carthage 0
Video Box Score
Final
Wartburg 27, at Simpson 13
Video Box Score Recap Recap
Final
Augsburg 30, at St. Scholastica 23
Video Box Score
Final
at Carleton 51, Macalester 7
Video Box Score
Final
Central 63, at Luther 26
Video Box Score
Final
Benedictine 36, at Aurora 35
Video Box Score Recap
Final
Washington U. 41, at Carroll 29
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at UW-Eau Claire 42, Martin Luther 6
Video
Final
at Dubuque 34, Loras 27
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Chicago 24, Illinois College 21
Video Box Score
Final
Cornell 20, at Lawrence 0
Video Box Score
Final
at Coe 62, Nebraska Wesleyan 14
Video Box Score
Final
Monmouth 49, at Lake Forest 6
Video Box Score
Final
at Ripon 30, Grinnell 20
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Hardin-Simmons 52, Louisiana Christian 17
Video Box Score
Final
Millsaps 41, at Hendrix 19
Video Box Score
Final
at Huntingdon 52, McMurry 46
Video Box Score
Final
Eureka 40, at Rockford 20
Video Box Score
Cancelled
Lyon at Greenville
Video Live stats
Final
Cortland 59, at Hartwick 9
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Adrian 57, Manchester 0
Video
Final
Trinity (Texas) 45, at Pacific Lutheran 8
Video
Final
Willamette 29, at La Verne 14
Video Box Score
Final
Redlands 34, at Whitworth 17
Video Box Score Recap Recap
Final
at Washington and Lee 35, Guilford 7
Video Box Score
Final
at Brevard 38, Erskine 34
Video Box Score Recap
Final
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 28, at George Fox 21
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Linfield 28, Chapman 13
Video Box Score
Final
Cal Lutheran 55, at Puget Sound 28
Video Box Score
Final
Lewis and Clark 21, at Pomona-Pitzer 3
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Kalamazoo 27, Anderson 0
Video Box Score Recap
Final
Wittenberg 55, at Ohio Wesleyan 17
Video Box Score
Final
at Alfred State 56, Buffalo State 20
Video Box Score
Final
Westminster (Pa.) 28, at Case Western Reserve 23
Video Box Score Recap
Final
at Tufts 22, Wesleyan 20
Video Box Score
Final
at Allegheny 26, Thiel 0
Video Box Score
Final
at Geneva 55, St. Vincent 35
Video Box Score
Final - OT
Calvin 40, at Heidelberg 37
Video Box Score Recap Live stats Audio
Final
at Davidson 48, Greensboro 0
Video Box Score
Final
Knox 16, at Beloit 14
Video
Final
Concordia (Wis.) 27, at Wisconsin Lutheran 20
Video Box Score
Final
Wheaton (Ill.) 50, at Augustana 7
Video Box Score
Final
at Millikin 22, North Park 17
Video
Final
UW-Stout 56, at Northwestern (Minn.) 13
Video Box Score
Final
East Texas Baptist 50, at Centenary (La.) 33
Box Score
Final
Texas Lutheran 38, at Southwestern 35
Video Box Score
Final
at Crown 30, Minnesota-Morris 20
Video Box Score
Final
UW-Stevens Point 36, at Pacific 13
Video