Strong Start Leads William Penn to Victory Over CMU

Fayette, Mo.–In a game postponed one day, the Statesmen football team jumped out to a big lead and kept its foe at a comfortable distance in a 35-17 victory over Central Methodist in a Heart of America Athletic Conference crossover game Sunday.

WPU (2-2) outgained the Eagles (1-3) 468-274, won the turnover battle, and scored a defensive touchdown less than 24 hours after the contest was originally scheduled to be played. The game was postponed Saturday due to inclement weather in the Show Me State.

One of the two takeaways came on the very first play from scrimmage as Donavin Brewer (So., Marion, Ark., Business Management) intercepted a deep CMU pass. Taking over at their own 30-yard line, the Statesmen hit the ground running, literally, with five rushes in a row to move the ball to the Eagles’ 32-yard line.

WPU then followed that strings of runs with its first pass, and it was a good one as Sterling Ramsey II (So., Broken Arrow, Okla., Business Management) found Trey Mosley (Jr., Fort Dodge, Iowa, Kinesiology) across the middle and the junior ran away from the Central Methodist defense for a quick 7-0 lead.

The Statesmen defense bent, but refused to break on the next drive and returned the pigskin back to the offense. A nice balance of ground and air attack led to the squad’s second touchdown in as many possessions as Chauncey Andrews (Jr., Tulsa, Okla., Psychology) hit the endzone from four yards out to make it 14-0 with 4:09 left in the opening quarter.

The Statesmen tacked on another unanswered touchdown, going 80 yards on 17 plays in a lengthy span of 8:31. Ramsey tossed a ball to Destynd Loring (So., Charleston, S.C., Sports Management) who scampered in for a five-yard score and the Statesmen lead grew to 21-0 in the second period.

CMU finally got on the board with a field goal in its next drive, but paced by a 40-yard pass from Ramsey II to Kingston Oliver (Fr., St. Joseph, Mo., Exercise Science), the navy and gold again marched into the Eagles’ redzone. Unfortunately, the drive stalled out and the ball was turned over on downs.

Up 21-3 at intermission, William Penn enjoyed another long drive to start the second half, going 75 yards on nine plays, capped by a 17-yard touchdown pass play from Ramsey II to Mosley.

Ramsey II finished 17-for-27 for 241 yards and three touchdowns, while Mosley caught nine balls for 98 yards.

The Eagles answered with their first touchdown, while the next three combined drives fell short of points.

Midway through the final stanza, WPU’s defense put the proverbial nail in the coffin as Aldo Delgado (So., Kansas City, Mo., Sports Management) sacked the Central Methodist quarterback and, in the process, forced a fumble. Delgado then picked up the loose ball and returned it 23 yards for William Penn’s final touchdown, extending the edge to 35-10 with nine minutes left in regulation.

The home team added a irrelevant score a few minutes later to conclude the day’s scoring.

As aforementioned, the Statesmen found success in both aspects offensively, including racking up 241 passing yards and 227 rushing yards. Loring guided the ground game with 18 rushes for 80 yards, while Andrews picked up 65 yards and Keegan Simmons (Sr., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Elementary Education) added 64 more.

Rafael Irizarry (So., Cypress, Texas, Engineering Technology) matched Oliver with a 40-yard catch. Overall, Ramsey II connected with eight different receivers.

Defensively, Harlan Plumber (Sr., Bryan, Texas, Exercise Science) and Omari Campbell (Fr., Pompano Beach, Fla., Sports Management) each managed a team-best six tackles, while Jalyn Jackson (Fr., Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Industrial Engineering) and Malcolm Bryant (Jr., Cincinnati, Ohio, Sports Management) had five stops each. Jackson joined Delgado with a sack Saturday.

“It feels great to get another win under our belt,” Head Coach Marc Benavidez said. “Despite the second-consecutive week of lightning delays and the unplanned stay in a hotel, the guys remained focused and finished the task at hand. We are excited to be back at home next weekend against a tough opponent.”

Next Up: William Penn returns to Oskaloosa next Saturday to host Benedictine in a Heart crossover game at 5 p.m.