BALTIMORE, MD – Junior quarterback Hewitt Tomlin threw for 340 yards and one touchdown and host Johns Hopkins outscored visiting McDaniel 17-0 in the second quarter to fuel a 34-10 victory at Homewood Field Saturday afternoon in the regular season finale for both teams. The win – coupled with a Muhlenberg loss at Moravian today – gives the Blue Jays a share the Centennial Conference title, a title they share with Muhlenberg and Ursinus. All three teams finished 7-2 in the Centennial with the Mules grabbing the league's automatic bid to the upcoming NCAA playoffs via the head-to-head tie-breaker.
With its share of the title and a 7-3 overall record, Johns Hopkins is likely to receive a bid to an ECAC Bowl Game next Saturday at a site to be determined.
The Blue Jays led just 7-3 midway through the second quarter before erupting for 17 unanswered points in the final seven minutes of the period to extend their lead to 24-3 at the half.
After a McDaniel punt that resulted in a touchback, the Blue Jays moved 80 yards in nine plays to push the lead to 14-3. Hopkins did a majority of the damage on the ground as junior Scott Barletta rushed for 30 yards and juniorTyler Porco covered 18 yards on three carries, including the final 10 on a quarterback draw that capped the drive.
The Green Terror moved the ball out near midfield on their ensuing possession, but a Mike Mahon interception for the Blue Jays killed the drive at the JHU 45. Five plays later, Hopkins had extended the lead to 21-3.
Tomlin fueled the drive with a 26-yard completion to junior Sam Wernick and consecutive completions to seniorTucker Michels that totaled 36 yards. One play after a 32-yard pass to Michels, Barletta went in from two yards out to account for the 18-point lead.
After forcing a quick three-and-out, the Blue Jays took over at midfield with less than two minutes remaining in the half and moved inside the McDaniel 10-yard line before settling for a 24-yard field goal from senior Alex Lachman to make it 24-3 at the half.
McDaniel got the only points of the third quarter as Vince Snarski capped a nine-play, 70-yard drive with a two-yard run with 9:16 remaining in the period. The Blue Jays managed just 26 yards of total offense in the quarter, but the defense held tight and the offense put the game away and secured a share of the conference title with 10 points in a span of less than three minutes midway through the fourth quarter.
Lachman's second field goal of the game – this one from 20 yards out – made it 27-3 and a two-yard scoring run by Nick Fazio accounted for the final scoring in JHU's 10th straight win over the Green Terror.
Tomlin's 340-yard effort fueled an offensive attack that rolled up 446 yards and held the ball for more than 33 minutes. Michels totaled eight receptions for 120 yards and set a school record by starting his 44th consecutive game. Barletta rushed for a career-high 65 yards and the one touchdown and Fazio added the rushing touchdown and had opened the scoring with a 17-yard touchdown reception midway through the first quarter.
McDaniel quarterback Thomas Massucci threw for 164 yards, but he was sacked three times and threw a pair of interceptions – both by Mahon. Senior Matt Cahill had five receptions for 57 yards to lead the Terror and he finishes his career as McDaniel's career leader in receptions (156) and third in receiving yards (2,004). FreshmanJoe Rollins, who had rushed for 294 yards in last week's win over Gettysburg, was held to just 63 yards on 16 carries.
The Blue Jay defense held its third straight opponent to 10 points or less and held the Green Terror to just 204 yards of total offense. Junior Ryan Piatek led the way with 13 tackles, including 1.5 sacks, and added a pair of pass breakups. He pushed his season tackle total to 103, the most by a Johns Hopkins player since Matt Hagelhad 106 in 2004. Taylor Maciow added 11 tackles, including 1.5 for losses.
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