Providence, RI- As is typically the case in games that produce 60 points or more, the Golden Rams opening game of the NCAA Division II Playoffs at Bryant University came down to one play. The secondary was torched all afternoon by Bryant quarterback Charlie Granatell, but in the end, Tyler Downs’ interception saved the day. West Chester escaped Bryant University with a 31-29 victory. Leading up to Saturday’s showdown, this game appeared to be a matchup of two very similar teams with the potential to go down to the wire, with whoever has the final possession of the ball coming out on top. For once in a playoff game, that’s exactly what transpired. The game opened in dramatic fashion when Bill Zwaan Jr., found Mike Washington at the 30 along the sideline. Washington was in tight coverage against Bryce Martins, and simply leaped up and came down with the reception and high wired his way down the sidelines for a 72 yard touchdown.
Thus the first shot was fired in the shootout.
It would not take long for Bryant to respond to the Golden Rams’ opening salvo. The Bulldogs engineered a seven-play 75 yard drive that culminated with a pair of plays Rashad Grimsley would like to soon forget. On first and ten, Granatell fired a pass down the sidelines intended for Sean Bergin that fell incomplete, but Grimsley committed a flagrant pass interference penalty. Two plays later, Granatell found Ryan Buckley for an eleven yard touchdown pass, tying the game.
It would have been nice if Grimsley’s breakdown was the only trouble spot for West Chester’s much maligned secondary. Anthony Gallop, Anthony Belasco and Grimsley had a tough go of it. To Granatell’s credit, he did a nice job of escaping heavy pressure from Lateef Ferguson, Jimmy Lewis, David Montgomery and company.
This game was as much about a steady barrage of points being scored by both sides, as it was the ebb and flow of momentum. Besides the combination of Granatell’s stellar performance and West Chester’s poor secondary play, Bryant’s propensity and ability to go for and succeed on fourth down went a long way to keeping the Bulldogs in it. The Bulldogs were four for four on fourth down conversions which led to 21 points. The most dramatic came with just over three minutes remaining in the first half.
After Granatell spotted Justin Kix open underneath in coverage by Downs, the Bulldogs drove inside the West Chester five yard line, poised pull within one at 21-20. However the Golden Ram defense held Bryant on the first three downs. Then, in what would become a pattern the rest of the game, coach Marty Fine elected to go for it on fourth down. Granatell dropped back under heavy pressure from Lewis and threw up a prayer, which was answered by Kix about three yards deep in the endzone.Belasco added a 25 yard field goal, and West Chester led 24-20 at the half.
Both offenses continued to have their way with the opponent’s defense in the second half, but West Chester served up a steady dose of Brent Steinmetz and Brandon Hargrose. Steinmetz would add his second touchdown of the game and 103 yards in the second half alone. “Brent played really well,” said Coach Zwaan. “He’s been our feature guy pretty much all year and we know we can keep going to him. He breaks tackles and makes plays.”
When it was all said and done, the senior tailback accounted for 142 yards and two scores. Hargrose would finish the day with eight carries for 38 yards and a touchdown.
The final swing of momentum came with about three minutes remaining in the game when the Bulldog defense held Hargrose on fourth and three at its own 43 yard line. Granatell brought his troops out onto the field and put together a nine play drive to the West Chester 22. Then Granatell got greedy. He fired a pass intended for Kix, and Downs stepped up and made the interception that saved West Chester’s season “They got me quite a few times today on the post play. I took an inside route and played the ball and ended up intercepting it. It helped us win the game,” said Downs after the game.
The Golden Ram offense was nothing short of prolific on Saturday afternoon, scoring 31 points on 31 plays, making up for some shortcomings on defense. All in all this is a game that West Chester can build on as it advances to the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2004 against Valdosta State in the National Semi-Finals. West Chester travels to Bloomsburg to take on the Huskies at 12:00 in the NCAA Division II Northeast Regional Semi-Finals.