By Evin Caswell, Staff Writer
The Susquehanna football team defeated Dickinson Col- lege 24-17 on Oct. 5 at home in Selinsgrove, Pa., moving them up to second in the Centennial Conference rankings alongside No. 19 John Hopkins.
“We feel like we have been so close the past couple years to be in this position,” senior wide receiver Mitch Carsley said. “But going on from here, we know that there is a huge target on our back because everyone wants to ruin what we have. So we just have to make sure we keep doing our thing and this momentum rolling and hopefully we will keep going up in the polls.”
Dickinson’s first drive of the game was ended after 31 yards were gained thanks to a sack from senior linebacker Craig Roumes.
Susquehanna’s initial offensive pressure started with a 50- yard drive that ended with a eld goal from sophomore kicker Elijah Hoffman, putting the River Hawks on the board and up 3-0.
To end the quarter, Dickinson’s junior quarterback Robert Geiss completed a 33-yard pass to senior wide receiver Daniel Salamone to give Dickinson a 7-3 advantage.
Dickinson was rst to score in the second quarter thanks to their senior kicker Trystin Golowski, who hit a 27-yard eld goal to end a 47-yard drive by the Red Devils and gain a 10-3 advantage.
Susquehanna was quick to respond, as it took the River Hawks only four plays to drive down the field, ending with sophomore quarterback Michael Ruisch connecting with senior wide receiver Mikah Christian on a 39-yard touchdown and tying the score 10-10.
After each team went three and out on their following possessions, Roumes intercepted Dickinson’s Geiss and ran it back 44 yards for a Susquehanna touchdown, putting them up 17-10.
To start the second half, Roumes came out aggressive with a strip sack on Geiss, giving Susquehanna the ball on the Dickinson 35.
The River Hawks were unable to capitalize on the turnover, however, losing yards on three plays.
Dickinson then took over possession and looked to be on their way to putting points on the board, but Golowski was unable to convert on a 29-yard field goal. Luckily for the Red Devils, Susquehanna went three and out on the following possession.
The Red Devils were then given strong field position thanks to multiple penalties which allowed senior running back Jeremy Walsh to tie it up at 17-17 after a four-yard rush for a Dickinson touchdown.
Susquehanna didn’t wait long to respond. A three-play, 65-yard drive was capped off by Ruisch to Christian for a 41-yard touchdown to put the River Hawks up 24-17.
Neither team was able to score in the fourth quarter, which led to a 24-17 victory over Dickinson for Susquehanna.
Susquehanna tallied a total of 351 yards of offense, 255 yards through the air and 96 yards on the ground.
“We had to take it play by play and simply execute what we had practiced all week,” Ruisch said.