Lycoming One Yard From Victory                             Lebanon Valley Barely Escapes, 15-9

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa.—Lycoming (3-3) dominated statistically, but finished one yard shy of defeating Lebanon Valley (4-4) on Saturday. Glenn Smith’s quarterback draw with three seconds remaining in the game was stuffed at the one-yard line by Kevin Krause. Six points would have tied the score at 15, and an extra point would have won the game for the Warriors on their homecoming weekend.

Smith (Watsontown, PA) threw for 201 yards and ran for 30 yards on the afternoon as the Warriors doubled the Flying Dutchmen in total offense, 342 yards to 171. Running back John Seese had an exceptional day, running for 96 yards on 23 carries. Senior receiver Tony Kopp (Saint Mary’s, PA) caught five passes for 58 yards, while freshman wideout Brad Shellenberger (Lock Haven, PA) continued to emerge as a receiving threat with four catches for 45 yards.

Unfortunately, Lycoming could not capitalize in the red zone and four Warrior drives resulted in Mike Monastra (Havertown, PA) field goal attempts. Monastra hit kicks of 36, 33 and 29 yards, but missed his third attempt.

Mistakes in the red zone proved costly for Lycoming all day. A holding penalty negated a Glenn Smith touchdown run on the Warriors’ opening possession. Then Smith & co. marched down the field to start the second half, only to throw an interception in Lebanon Valley’s end zone. Finally, a Smith fumble at Lebanon Valley’s 35 yard line stalled Lycoming’s penultimate drive.

In the meantime, the Warrior defense smothered the Flying Dutchmen’s attack. Sophomore Chris Smith (Philadelphia, PA), who recently moved from running back to linebacker, took advantage of his first chance to play, recording a team high seven tackles. The Warriors stymied dangerous running back Charlie Parker, holding Parker to 38 yards on ten carries. For the game, Lebanon Valley only mustered 88 yards rushing and 83 yards passing.

But that was enough.

As the Dutchmen celebrated, Smith and several teammates lingered on David Person Field, in disbelief of how close victory can be, yet how far it can slip away. But tomorrow is another day and the Warriors travel to Moravian next Saturday, October 28 for a 1:00 kickoff.