Football Looks to Stay Unbeaten at Gettysburg

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HUNTINGDON, Pa.- The Juniata football team heads to Gettysburg on Saturday to face the Bullets in a Centennial Conference matchup. Kickoff from Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium will be at 1:00 p.m.

The Eagles are 2-0 overall and are coming off a big 41-21 victory over Dickinson last Saturday at Knox Stadium. Hank Coyne passed for 280 yards and three touchdowns. He threw one interception and was never sacked. Kirby Breault bested his performance from a week ago with five catches for 171 yards and two touchdown catches. Aaron O'Brien hauled in four passes for 85 yards and a score. On the ground, David Vidovic led the way with 61 yards and two touchdowns. The defense had 11 tackles for losses, six pass breakups, three sacks, three interceptions, and two forced fumbles. Ryan Bologa accumulated nine total tackles and had one fumble return. Jake Diviney added eight total tackles, one sack, and a forced fumble. Mitchell Shober and John Michael Maclay both had six stops with Shober tacking on a fumble recovery and an interception.

Gettysburg is 1-1 and defeated Ursinus 42-17 in Collegeville. Senior Danny Thompson  and junior Justin Davidov combined for 360 yards passing and five touchdowns. Thompson went 10-of-15 for 200 yards and a pair of scores, while Davidov threw three scoring passes on just five completions. Davidov also rushed for 38 yards and another score. Sophomore Justin Walsh carried the ball 21 times for 77 yards. Junior Ryan Thompson hauled in four catches for 94 yards, including a 64-yard touchdown in the first quarter. Freshman Kevin Benavente and sophomore Matt McFadden posted 73 and 66 receiving yards, respectively. The defense racked up eight tackles for a loss, three sacks, two forced fumbles, and an interception. Sophomore Mike McKnight posted 95 yards combined on a fumble recovery and an interception. Sophomore Jake Skinner totaled nine tackles and a sack.

The Eagles will be out to exact some revenge on the Bullets. In the last meeting between the two schools in Huntingdon last year, kicker Kevin Bonalle nailed a 39-yard field goal with 1:08 to play in the fourth quarter to give JC a 25-24 lead. Gettysburg got down to the Juniata 39 where on third and 10, quarterback Sam McDermott connected with Tyler Frazee for the touchdown with 19 ticks on the clock as the Bullets went ahead 30-25. The Eagles moved to midfield for a potential game-winning score but Coyne would be intercepted by Gettysburg's Derek Slinger and the Bullets walked off with the win.

Gettysburg leads the all-time series 21-9. The Eagles' last victory over the Bullets was a 38-16 triumph in Huntingdon in 2013. Juniata has not won in Gettysburg since 1979.