Jarel Elder stole the show Saturday for the Golden Rams as West Chester grabbed their first victory of the 2015 season, beating Seton Hill 48-38.
On a day that featured the return of All-American tight end Tim Brown, Elder stole the show by combining for 331 total yards (247 rushing, 83 receiving) and four total touchdowns. The junior running back helped lead a fourth quarter charge that resulted in a Rams victory.
After being declared eligible late last week by the NCAA, Brown couldn’t have made his way back to the locker room at a better time. After a 0-2 start, West Chester needed a spark to reboot their season. Brown only caught one pass for 23 yards on Saturday, but his presence in the passing game made sophomore quarterback Pat Moriarty’s day much easier.
Moriarty continues to improve every week. The 6’2 quarterback from Gladwyne, Pa., finished 20-38 with 302 passing yards, three touchdowns, and one interception. Despite a bit of a shaky performance in the first half, Moriarty found his footing and ultimately put on a solid performance, a good sign for Coach Zwaan. With Brown back, Moriarty has an opportunity to better himself even more.
Despite the huge day from Elder, there were other impactful performances on the offensive side of the ball. Elder led all receivers with eight catches, but senior Shannon Mayer tallied 82 yards on four catches and a touchdown in the fourth quarter. Mayer, who has been called upon frequently in the Rams offense, played his best game of the season Saturday.
Eddie Elliot, who made the transition from running back to slot receiver this offseason, found his way back to the backfield Saturday. Elliot helped take some of the load off of Elder, carrying the ball seven times for 87 yards.
On the other side of the ball, defensive lineman Andrew Cohen broke the West Chester career sack record on his only tackle of the day, improving his career total to 22. Cohen is on pace for another reward-earning season and has been the cornerstone of the Golden Rams defense so far this year.
Kevin Duggan and Drew Formica led the Rams with six tackles each, with numerous players not far behind with five or four respectively. West Chester was able to eliminate the Seton Hill rushing game, only allowing 64 total yards on the ground.
Within his 48 passing attempts, Seton Hill quarterback Christian Strong coughed the ball up three separate times, which turned to West Chester interceptions. Ted Patton and Brandon Pepper both built on their impressive 2015 campaigns with interceptions, while red-shirt freshman Nydair Rouse grabbed his first interception in the purple and gold.
AJ Arcaini is a fourth-year student majoring in communication studies with a minor in journalism. He can be reached at AA788494@wcupa.edu