Clipart of Football
The Hillsdale football team defeated Thomas More University 24-10 on the road Nov. 1, improving to 4-5 overall and 3-4 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.
“We have really come together these past couple of weeks and had some good football, and some good fun doing so,” sophomore quarterback Colin McKernan said.
McKernan rushed for a career-high 82 yards on 10 carries, which included two rushing touchdowns. Freshman quarterback Eli Boyce added 66 rushing yards on 13 carries.
“A lot of what the quarterbacks did on the ground was just taking what the defense was giving us,” head coach Nate Shreffler said. “Most were option-type plays and they did a nice job reading their key and pulling the ball when they needed to. We didn’t have a lot of yards passing, but the quarterbacks were efficient when we did. Completing nine of 12 on the day is a pretty good day.”
In addition to McKernan’s touchdowns, junior receiver Shea Ruddy had a 60-yard kickoff return and also ran for a touchdown. Freshman kicker Dylan DeDario kicked a 30-yard field goal on the Chargers’ first possession, making the team successful four out of five times in the red zone.
“The name of the game is scoring points, so anytime we are in the red zone we need to come away with something,” Shreffler said. “Whether we are scoring touchdowns or kicking field goals, our goal each week is to score 100% of the time when we are down there.”
The Charger defense held Thomas More to 8 rushing yards and 188 passing yards while forcing two fumbles and an interception.
“Defensively we had an outstanding day,” Shreffler said. “Generating three big turnovers and giving the offense a short field to work with most of the day were keys to the victory. The run defense was especially good. Anytime you hold an opponent to eight yards rushing you are doing a lot of things right.”
Ruddy said the team will work on improving its second-half performance, as the Chargers have not scored in the second half in their last two games..
“We need to pass the ball more in the second half to string drives together,” Ruddy said. “We are killing too many drives with mistakes and short run plays, so we need to be a bit more explosive to put some points up in the second half.”
The Chargers will next travel to North Canton, Ohio, to face Walsh University Nov. 8.
“This week will show if we are really hitting our stride,” Ruddy said. “Walsh is a good team that we need to beat.”
