HAMPDEN-SYDNEY, Va. - The Randolph-Macon football team outscored Hampden-Sydney 24-0 in the second half to post a 48-23 victory Saturday afternoon at Fulton Field to win the ODAC title and earn the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
The Yellow Jackets improved to 9-1 overall and 6-1 in the ODAC. R-MC tied a program record for victories in a season, last accomplished in 1984. The Yellow Jackets have defeated the Tigers (3-7, 3-4 ODAC) three straight times and five times in the past six meetings. It was the highest point total for R-MC at H-SC, passing the 45 points scored in a 45-42 win in 1998. Over the past six seasons, R-MC is 12-2 in the month of November.
R-MC held a 24-23 lead at intermission The Yellow Jackets drove 64 yards on its first possession of the second half, as sophomore Tre Frederick (Angier, N.C./West Johnston) ran the final eight yards for the touchdown to give the Yellow Jackets a 31-23 edge with 12:30 left in the third quarter.
The R-MC defense then forced the Tigers to punt for the first time and the Yellow Jackets took over on the H-SC 45. R-MC used 13 plays to reach the end zone in 6:43, as freshman quarterback Burke Estes (New Hanover, N.C./New Hanover) rumbled in from nine yards out to extend the lead to 38-23 with 5:14 left in the third period.
Senior Marcus Mitchell snagged his team-leading fifth interception to give R-MC the ball on the H-SC 27. Senior Seth Yurgel (Fredericksburg, Va./Courtland) hit a 30-yard field goal to give the visitors a 41-23 advantage with 2:02 remaining in the third quarter.
R-MC outscored H-SC 17-0 in the third quarter and the Tigers picked up just one first down in the period.
The Yellow Jackets put the game away early in the fourth quarter, driving 85 yards in 12 plays in 4:32. R-MC faced a fourth-and-13 on the H-SC 30 when Estes hit freshman Trey Owens (Craven, NC./Havelock) on a 29-yard pass to the H-SC 1. Sophomore Eric Hoy (Clayton, N.C./Clayton) ran the final yard for the touchdown to complete the scoring, giving the Yellow Jackets a 48-23 lead.
Making his first collegiate start, Estes completed 18 of 28 passes for 329 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. Owens was his favorite target, snagging five balls for 115 yards.
Frederick led the R-MC ground game with 18 carries for 83 yards and two scores.
Senior Logan O'Neill (Lorton, Va./South County) paced the Yellow Jacket defense with six tackles, including one tack for loss. Senior Cole Burdette (Frederick, Md./Urbana) had four tackles, all for loss.. Two were quarterback sacks.
The Yellow Jackets won the coin toss and deferred to the second half. The Tigers took the opening kickoff and drove to the R-MC 11, hitting a 28-yard field goal to take an early 3-0 lead.
The Yellow Jackets drove 75 yards on their first drive, as Frederick ran the final 15 yards for a touchdown to give R-MC a 7-3 advantage with 6:37 left in the first period.
H-SC completed a 26-yard scoring pass with 4:11 left in the first period, putting the Tigers on top 10-7.
Estes hit sophomore Sean McDonald (Boyce, Va./Clarke County) on an 18-yard TD pass as R-MC reclaimed the lead at 14-10 with 2:38 remaining in the opening period.
The Tigers nailed a 46-yard field goal with 11:12 left in the second quarter to pull within one at 14-13.
H-SC had fourth and one on the R-MC 41 and quarterback Alec Cobb was stopped for no gain with 4:26 left in the first half. After Estes hit McDonald on a 48-yard pass, Yurgel made a 41-yard field goal to give the visitors a 17-13 advantage with 2:46 left in the period.
The Tigers hit a 76-yard touchdown pass to go ahead 20-17 with 2:01 remaining until halftime.
Senior Deshaun Rogers (Mechanicsville, Va./Lee-Davis) returned the ensuing kickoff 59 yards to the H-SC 39. Estes hit Frederick on a 39-yard scoring pass as R-MC reclaimed the lead at 24-20 with 1:37 left in the second quarter.
H-SC moved to the R-MC 18 and made a 35-yard field goal with 18 seconds left to make the halftime score 24-23 in favor of the Yellow Jackets.
The field for the 2016 NCAA Division III Tournament will be revealed on Sunday, Nov. 13 at 6 p.m. ET on ncaa.com.