Moreno, Melo find end zone

WEST POINT, N.Y. (September 26, 2014) – Junior Josh Tilton (Seymour, Conn.) notched three sacks and four tackles for loss to lead the defensive effort on Friday night, but the Franklin Pierce University sprint football team was defeated, 27-13, at Army in Collegiate Sprint Football League play at Shea Stadium. Senior quarterback J.J. Wartski threw for 322 yards and three touchdowns in the victory for Army.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 0-2, while Army improves to 2-0. For the Ravens, Friday night represented a step up from last year's meeting with the Black Knights, when the Army went rolling along to a 41-12 victory in Ashburnham, Mass.

Trailing 10-0 at the half, Franklin Pierce came out of the locker room and took control of the third quarter, scoring twice to take a 13-7 lead into the fourth quarter. Army's initial drive of the second half went three-and-out, leading to a punt on fourth-and-one from its own 39-yard line. Freshman defensive back William Hart (Amherst, N.H.) was able to get through the line, block the kick and cover it up, which left the Ravens with strong field position, as they opened their drive at the Army 30.

From there, Franklin Pierce put together its strongest rushing drive of the young season, as the crimson and grey went nine plays and 30 yards to the end zone without attempting a pass. Sophomore Andrew Jean (Irvington, N.J.) opened the drive with a nine-yard scamper and had 20 yards across five rushes on the series. On third-and-goal, freshman running back Demitri Moreno (Alhambra, Calif.) capped the scoring drive with a four-yard touchdown carry.

The Ravens' defense immediately got the ball back in the offense's hands, as senior defensive back Derek Reddy (Natick, Mass.) intercepted Wartski on the first play of the ensuing drive and returned it seven yards to the Army 20. Again working with the short field, Franklin Pierce kept the ball exclusively on the ground. Moreno had an 11-yard rush on second-and-six from the 16 and, after a false start backed things up, freshman quarterback Jose Melo (Greenwich, Conn.) finished off the drive himself with a 10-yard touchdown rush.

After the missed extra point, Franklin Pierce held the 13-10 lead through the remainder of the third quarter. The Ravens had possession in their own end at the start of the fourth quarter, but the drive stalled out and the punt set up Army to start a drive of its own at the Franklin Pierce 49.

The Black Knights needed just 1:48 to go six plays and 49 yards to the end zone to reclaim the lead. Wartski went 4-for-5 for 65 yards on the drive, as a pair of Army penalties forced him to cover more than just the 49 yards in front of him when the drive began. The big blow was a 35-yard strike to senior wide receiver Zachary Woods on first-and-10 from the Army 47. Wartski ultimately capped the drive by going to Woods again, this time for 19 yards and the score on third-and-11 at the Franklin Pierce 19, to give the Black Knights a 17-13 lead.

After Franklin Pierce's next drive ran out of steam near midfield, Army added a 42-yard field goal from junior kicker Warren Kay with 4:31 to play, after a nine-play, 43-yard drive which chewed up 4:02. Wartski went 4-for-6 on the scoring drive for 85 yards, including a 44-yard heave to junior wideout Tucker Van Dyke on first-and-25 from the Army 30. Kay's kick at the end of the drive created the 27-13 final.

Despite surrendering 11 sacks on Friday, the Ravens put together a much better ground attack than they did a week ago at Cornell. Jean and Moreno each carried 13 times, with the former netting 44 yards and the latter netting 37 yards and a touchdown. No Franklin Pierce receiver finished with more than one catch at West Point, as junior wide receiver Shawn DeCost (Nashua, N.H.) hauled in a 26-yard strike to finish as the team's leading receiver.

The Black Knights attempted just 21 rushes and netted -16 yards in those attempts. Sophomore running back Marqus Burrell was the team's leading rusher, despite netting just 11 yards on six carries. Army did almost all of its damage through the air, as four players caught at least three passes, led by Van Dyke's seven receptions for 115 yards and Woods' eight catches for 93 yards and two touchdowns.

Melo finished 5-for-15 for 57 yards for Franklin Pierce, and did not throw an interception in his second week on the job. Wartski was the star of the day, as he went 31-for-53 for 322 yards and three touchdowns, though he was also intercepted twice.

Defense was the story of the day for the Ravens on the banks of the Hudson. Sophomore Brandon Knight (Bronx, N.Y.) led the team with eight tackles (seven solo), including one for a loss. Eight different Ravens recorded at least one tackle for loss, led by Tilton's four. Tilton contributed three sacks among those four TFLs, while sophomore defensive lineman Jacques Elias (Amherst, N.H.) added a sack as well. Reddy had both Franklin Pierce interceptions.

For Army, junior defensive end Philip Choi and senior defensive lineman Tyler Peterson finished with 11 tackles and three sacks each. Peterson led all players with five tackles for loss, to lead eight different Black Knights who made a tackle behind the line of scrimmage. Senior defensive end David Brown also had multiple sacks on the night, with two.

The Ravens return to the field on Friday, Oct. 3, when they hold their first-ever on-campus home game, against Princeton. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Sodexo Field in Rindge.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce sprint football apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).