It was a day full of celebration for the West Chester Golden Rams. The team honored a total of 18 seniors in a ceremony before the game. The senior players walked down the sidelines with their parents as they were honored for their contributions to the program.
The now 9-0 Rams entered the game as heavy favorites against the 1-8 Lock Haven University Bald Eagles, and West Chester did not disappoint, as they dominated the game from start to finish in their 48-14 blowout win. Although a plethora of offensive penalties stalled multiple drives for the Rams, their offensive attack proved too overwhelming for Lock Haven’s second—to—last ranked defense that has allowed 44 points per game this season.
The Rams’ offense picked up right where they left off from last week’s strong rushing attack against Kutztown. The Rams once again dominated on the ground thanks to the dynamic duo of senior running backs Mike Class and Mark Dukes. While Class only had ten attempts, he made every one of them count by running for 71 yards and by putting the finishing touches on several drives with three touchdowns.
Class credited his performance to his offensive lineman. “Anytime I score or I do well on the ground, the credit is all to them,” Class said. “They’re the ones out there moving people; moving the furniture for me.”
Class’s first rushing touchdown was the beginning of the Rams’ onslaught, as he ran six yards into the endzone to put the Rams up 10-0 in the first quarter. His next touchdown was a two yard run that made the score 24-7. He then added a bulldozing 21 yard touchdown in the third quarter that extended the Rams’ already immense lead to 41-7.
Even though the Rams already clinched a spot in the PSAC championship game, the win was immense for a lot of players, especially the team’s seniors, who were playing their last regular season game in front of the home crowd at Farrell stadium. Class added that the win was also important in honor of his former West Chester teammate, Sean Boylan, who tragically passed away in 2016.
“It really meant a lot to me, especially with it being senior day,” Class said. “It meant a lot to my parents, especially to my friend Sean Boylan. Rest in peace, Sean Boylan.”
Quarterback A.J Long also contributed with 30 yards rushing, but his impact mostly came through his precision in the air. Long completed 18 out of 21 passes for 245 yards, including a 31 yard bomb to Lex Rosario that put the Rams at the one yard line. Rosario served as Long’s favorite target on the day, reeling in seven catches for 121 yards and two touchdowns for West Chester.
“We’ve always been good, but this year is really special,” Rosario said. “We’re 9-0 now; trying to be 10-0 and just keep winning.”
Quarterback Paul Dooley also made an early appearance, immediately making an impact hitting freshman wide receiver Gabe Schappell with a 50 yard strike into the endzone to open up the second quarter. Once the Rams built a convincing lead, Dooley replaced Long in the fourth quarter and completed 8 out of 11 passes for 120 yards and two touchdowns, including finding Rosario for another touchdown to add to his impressive performance.
“We have two starting quarterbacks,” Head Coach Bill Zwaan said about Long’s and Dooley’s ability. “So it really gives us a little extra stuff that somebody’s got to study and learn – it’s definitely a positive for us.”
Last season, Dooley threw for 2,327 yards and 21 touchdowns as the team’s starter. Meanwhile, Long has 18 passing touchdowns and 1,767 passing yards this year while completing 67 percent of his passes and rushing for more than 700 yards.
Defensively, West Chester continued to show why they were the number one defense in the PSAC with another dominating effort. Third-year safety Jarey Elder set the tone early adding a third interception to his season and killing the Bald Eagles’ opening drive.
While the Rams allowed a 25 yard touchdown run to end the first quarter, the Rams’ defense quickly tightened up and served as a brick wall against the Bald Eagles’ rushing attack. Senior defensive lineman Diquan Gilbert made his presence known, penetrating Lock Haven’s offensive line for a sack in the second quarter.
“We’re physical,” Zwaan said. “We play physical defensively, and now we’ve been playing physically offensively. We just don’t let anything bother us, it seems. We’re a very mature team.”
The Rams will play Slippery Rock University for the PSAC Championship on the road Saturday at 1 p.m. It will be a battle between two undefeated teams in what will be the Rams hardest challenge yet. For the senior Rams, the game Saturday is what they have been waiting for all year after losing in the championship game last season.
“The seniors kind of regrouped and said to each other: ‘we want one bad’,” Class said. “We all knew this was our last year to make something happen. I think this is the year.”
Juche Jackson is a third-year student majoring in communications studies. JJ844004@wcupa.edu
Brian Devine is a fourth-year student majoring in English and minoring in journalism. BD884861@wcupa.edu