Box ScoreSCHENECTADY, NYSophomore safety Alex Markel (Miami, FL/Arlington) returned an interception 76 yards with 31 seconds remaining in regulation to lift Union College to a 7-0 victory over the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in front of a Homecoming crowd of 1,560 at Frank Bailey Field.
The Dutchmen remain undefeated at 7-0, with their best start since a 7-0 mark in 1996. Union improved to 4-0 in the Liberty League. The Bears fell to 2-4 overall and 0-4 in the league.
Coast Guard started a drive with 1:42 left on its own 20 yard line after a 42 yard field goal by Union's Pat Cummings was missed. On the eighth play of the drive and a third-and12 from the Union-34, USCGA quarterback Connor Elms (Stephenville, TX) was intercepted by Markel at the Dutchmen 24, and the sophomore ran up the sidelines for the eventual winning score.
As the score would indicate, both defenses put up impressive numbers in the contest. Union held the Bears to eight first downs and 157 total yards, including 62 rushing and 95 passing. The Dutchmen also did not allow a third down conversion for the second straight week, as Coast Guard was 0 for 15 in that category. Opponents are now 0 for 29 in that category over the past two weeks. The Dutchmen also forced six turnovers, including five interceptions. Coast Guard held Union to a season low 200 total yards, including an even 100 in both rushing and passing, and also forced six turnovers, including five interceptions.
Running back Tom Arcidiacono (Castleton, NY/Columbia), the leading rusher in all of NCAA football entering the game, had 109 yards on 37 carries. He is now averaging 180.0 on the season. Quarterback Anthony Marotti (River Edge, NJ/River Dell) was nine for 27 for the 100 yards, while wide receiver Steve Angiletta (Plantsville, CT/Southington) had 62 yards on four catches. Jesse Smith (Worcester, MA/St. John's) and Kevin Flike (Stillwater, NY/La Salle) had eight tackles each for the Dutchmen, while Smith also had two tackles for losses.
Coast Guard defensive back Ben Leuthold (Oxford, OH) had a game-high 18 tackles, with three for losses of 13 yards, four pass deflections and two interceptions. Alan Grosse (Scottsdale, AZ) had seven tackles, three interceptions and three passes deflected. David Garden (Hampden, MA) was five for 15 for two interceptions and 26 yards and Elms was six for 17 for 69 yards for the Bears. Lance Lynch (Long Valley, NJ) had 54 yards on 23 carries and Erik Wyrick (Canyon Lake, CA) had three catches for 43 yards for Coast Guard.
Union threatened with 5:20 left in the first quarter, with a 14-play, 67-yard drive that took 6:40. But on the final play at that drive, on a third-and-13 from the USCGA 16, Grosse intercepted a Marotti pass in the endzone. Three plays later, Chris Nappi (Scotia, NY/Niskayuna) interecepted a Garden pass at the Coast Guard-39. On the next drive, Ben Rapple attempted a 38-yard field goal for the Dutchmen, but it was wide right. The Dutchmen had two more threats inside the visiting 40 stopped with interceptions in the second quarter, and Union's Vito Pellerito (Pompano Beach, FL/St. Thomas Aquinas) picked off a Garden pass at the Union two with eight seconds left in the stanza.
Markel also had a fumble recovery at the Union 38 with 8:30 left in the third quarter. With 4:44 left in the stanza, Leuthold had an interception at the Union 39 and brought it to the 24, but four plays later, a 35-yard field goal attempt from David Lieberman was wide right.
In the fourth quarter, the Bears started a drive at the Union-48 with 12:32 left. But on the fourth play, Doug Davis (Yonkers, NY/Fieldston) intercepted an Elms pass at the Union-18 and returned it 19 yards to end that threat.
With 7:50 left in the fourth period, the Dutchmen took over on their own 37. In a third-and-24 situation from the CG 33, the Bears were called for pass interference to keep the Union drive alive and bring it to the 18. But the Dutchmen were called for pass interference later in the drive, and Cummings attempted the 42-yarder on the 13th play of the drive.
Union will play at league rival St. Lawrence next Saturday at 1 p.m. while Coast Guard will play at league foe Rochester, also on October 29, at 12 p.m.
