Fast start propels Dickinson to 37-20 win over McDaniel
WESTMINSTER, Md. – Chris McInerney had 57 of his 131 return yards on a punt return with 10:15 remaining in the second quarter to stake Dickinson to a 27-0 lead en route to a 37-20 victory over McDaniel in Centennial Conference (CC) football action on Saturday.
McInerney added a team-high 36 yards receiving and Tim Smith rushed for 101 yards for the Red Devils (4-0, 2-0 CC), who outgained the Green Terror (0-4, 0-2 CC) by a 208-55 margin on the ground and 293-207 overall.
Tom Wenrich (Wernersville, Pa./Conrad Weiser) went 15-for-38 for 152 yards and three interceptions in his first start at quarterback for the injured Brad Baer (Westminster, Md./Westminster).
Dickinson wasted no time getting on the board, winning the coin toss and taking the opening possession 71 yards on eight plays in 3 minutes, 2 seconds for a 6-0 lead.
Ian Mitchell found McInerney twice on the drive for 21 yards before Smith dashed the final 17 for a 6-0 lead with 11:58 showing on the first quarter clock. Matt Stark’s extra-point attempt was blocked by Brian Walker (Westminster, Md./Francis Scott Key).
Later in the frame from his own 43, Smith broke off a 52-yard sprint down the right sideline on a late pitch on the option by Mitchell. Two plays later, Tim Wells made it a 12-0 game with a three-yard touchdown dive.
After Mike O’Donnell picked off Wenrich and returned it 23 yards to set up the Red Devils at their own five-yard line, the offense needed just two plays and a Gordon Craig PAT to make it a 19-0 game with 1:50 remaining in the first period.
Mitchell had the three-yard touchdown rush.
A Travis Wenrich (Wernersville, Pa./Conrad Weiser) interception, the Green Terror’s first pick of the 2007 season, the McDaniel offense took over inside its own one-yard line.
Three plays later, Tom Wenrich’s punt said 52 yards but Mitchell corralled it and was able to bring it back all the way. A Mitchell-too-McInerney pass on the two-point conversion made it 27-0.
After being held to minus-45 yards on its first seven possessions, the Green Terror put together its first sustained drive of the game with 6:36 remaining until intermission.
Starting from the McDaniel 24, Eric Zwilsky (Knoxville, Md./Brunswick) reeled off a pair of six-yard runs before a Saum Sami (Fruitland, Md./JM Bennett) 15-yard counter gave the Green Terror the ball on the Red Devil side of the field.
Back-to-back completions from Wenrich to Matt Cahill (Havertown, Pa./Haverford Twp.) moved the ball to the Dickinson 33.
With a first down at the 26, Wenrich found Matt Bergbauer (Westminster, Md./Westminster) for 25 yards and Zwilsky capped the 9-play, 76-yard march with his fifth touchdown of the year.
The Green Terror opened the third quarter with an 11-play, 61-yard drive that Zwilsky once again finished off, this time with a two-yard dive for his sixth rushing touchdown – more than the Green Terror had on the ground as a team in 2006.
A 28-yard Wenrich-to-Cahill pass on second-and-11 from the Dickinson 35 keyed the drive.
With two seconds remaining in the third quarter, O’Donnell nabbed his second interception of the game and returned it 25 yards for a touchdown, giving the Red Devils a 34-13 lead.
Zwilsky’s third rushing touchdown of the day put the finishing touches on a 13-play, 60-yard drive and pulled the visitors within 34-20 with 8:44 to play.
Craig nailed a 28-yard field goal on the ensuing Dickinson possession to set the final margin.
Juris Eyler (Middletown, Md./Middletown) averaged 23.0 yards per return on five kickoff returns before leaving with an injury in the third quarter. In two games returning, he has racked up 217 yards on eight returns.
Mike Weick (Holland, Pa./Penn Charter) led the Green Terror with 10 tackles, including a six-yard sack.
Ben Hargrave led the Red Devil defense with 14 stops while Michael Maxwell had eight and two pass breakups.
McDaniel returns to action at home against Juniata on Saturday. Game time is 1 p.m.
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