Photo by Kim Howes
By Logan Moyer, Assistant Sports Editor
9.6.23
Do not let anybody ever tell you that special teams do not matter.
The River Hawks football team dominated Bridgewater on Saturday in a non-conference matchup. Thanks to the gameplay by the special teams, D3football.com named the River Hawks 22nd in the nation.
“It is always great to start the season with a big win,” Perkovich said via email. “We still have a lot to improve heading into this week, but we are very happy with the way things went. I was proud of how our team started fast and battled the heat throughout the game. It was a very good game to build on.”
The River Hawks scored three times on special teams. A high snap on a punt in the first quarter resulted in a safety. In the second quarter on a Bridgewater punt attempt, Andrew Wells tackled the punter and forced a fumble. The fumble was recovered and taken to the endzone by Josh Lesesne. In the fourth quarter, a punt blocked by Wells was again recovered by Lesesne and returned for a touchdown.
“(The special teams unit) was critical,” Perkovich said. “We had a bad second quarter all around. For our punt return team to get the score before half really changed the momentum going into halftime. We dominated the third (quarter) and then the second touchdown was the backbreaker.”
Lesesne was named the Landmark Conference specialist of the week for his efforts, as well as the D3football.com team of the week. Linebacker Garrett Carter was named the conference’s defensive player of the week.
Several River Hawks shined in their debuts. Sophomore transfer quarterback Josh Ehrlich and freshman running back Matt Surtz played well. Ehrlich completed 19 out of 24 passes for a total of 186 yards and two touchdowns, also adding 74 yards on the ground as SU’s leading rusher. Meanwhile, Surtz grinded out 50 yards on the ground on ten carries, finding the endzone twice.
“I am excited for (Ehrlich and Surtz) as this was their first college action,” Perkovich said. “I hope they can build off this as we move forward. They are both very talented and made some great plays in the game.”
Susquehanna, voted by coaches as the favorites to win the Landmark Conference in its inaugural season, will continue their tough non-conference schedule next week with a matchup against SUNY Brockport before dueling #17 SUNY Cortland in week three. Both games will be played north of the state border in New York.
“(The win) only means something if Bridgewater wins a bunch of games going forward,” Perkovich said. “I believe the teams we will play in the next couple of weeks are much better and they will be wars.”
The River Hawks never trailed on Saturday afternoon, jumping out to a 16-0 lead in the first 11 minutes of the game on a 42-yard touchdown grab by Kyle Howes and a five-yard TD run by Tommy Grabowski, in addition to the safety.
“One of our goals this year is to start fast,” said the eight-year coach. “I felt during our warm-up we were ready to play. I also think we are tough to play against when we gain an early lead. Our defense is usually very stout and playing ahead is an advantage for our team.”
Following a pair of scores by the Eagles, a 14-yard touchdown reception by tight end Rowan Hershey sparked a 23-3 scoring run to secure the big win.
Lesesne, Jake Schultes, Garrett Carter and Alex Hacker all recorded a team-high five tackles defensively. Schultes and Josh Parsons tallied one sack each.
