Lafayette College Athletics

BRONX, N.Y. – Lafayette shut out Fordham in the second half Saturday at Moglia Stadium at Jack Coffey Field en route to its second straight victory of the season (31-17).

Freshman quarterback Eddie Jordan threw a perfect 13-for-13 against the Rams which set a new a program record for completion percentage in a single game. The previous mark was held by Drew Reed '16, who went 21-for-22 at Holy Cross during the 2013 campaign.

The record book needed additional adjusting as senior wide receiver Carson Persing climbed the ladder in career receptions and receiving yards. His second reception of the day moved him up to third all-time in receptions (169), now tied with Matt Mrazek '18. Persing ended the day with 89 yards on just two catches to jump Mark Layton '10 in ninth place with 1,813 career receiving yards.

The Leopards started with the ball on Saturday's first drive of the day after Fordham won the coin toss and elected to kick it away. Fordham handed Lafayette great field position when Bennett Henderson booted the ball out of bounds, but it ended up punting the ball away following a three and out.

The hosts failed to capitalize on their first drive, but a second punt from Lafayette led to a six-play 70-yard TD possesion on their second. Starting quarterback, Gunnar Smith, moved the chains with a 16-yard completion to KJ Reed followed by a 15-yard face mask that moved the Rams to the Leopards' 39-yard line. Jamell James kept the offense rolling with a pair of carries for seven yards prior to Smith slinging an 11-yard pass to Nodin Tracy. James capped the drive off with a 12-yard rush that found the end zone.

Despite the strong start for the Rams, Lafayette responded on its next possession with a 7-play 65-yard touchdown drive. Jakyre Henley got things going with an eight-yard carry, and Jordan secured a first down with a rush for three yards. With 1:40 to go in the first quarter, head coach John Troxell's group faced a 4th-and-1, but a face mask on the Rams extended the drive. Now in Fordham territory, Henley found a gap and exploded for a 30-yard touchdown to knot Saturday's contest (7-7). The King William, Va. native's early score marked his fifth touchdown in his last three outings.

After the kickoff, Fordham put together a six-minute drive (5:59) to retake the lead (14-7). Yohan-Li Louis tallied five carries for 21 yards on the 10-play 71-yard possession before finding the end zone with a four-yard rush off the right side.

A 34-yard kick return by Zane Wooldridge set up the Maroon and White's next scoring possession. A Jordan completion to Mason Kuehner and a six-yard carry from Henley moved the chains before Jordan slung a pass to Henley out of the backfield for another 10 yards. Now in Rams' territory, Jordan found sophomore receiver Matthew Scerbo for eight yards followed by two carries for 12 yards by Henley. Rookie running back Malachi Gamble then took the Leopards down to the hosts' six-yard line with a 12-yard carry. Jordan threw his first career touchdown on the next play with a six-yard strike to Kuehner.

The Rams had five minutes and some change (5:10) on the game clock before the end of the first half, but Lafayette's defense held strong to only allow a field goal. Fordham used 14 plays to drive 72 yards prior to a 20-yard conversion from Henderson. After two quarters of play in New York, the hosts led 17-14.

Lafayette flipped the script at the start of the second half, which started with a huge defensive stand. The Rams were only able to move the chains once before junior linebacker Callahan Blair worked his way into the backfield for a nine-yard sack on 4th-and-9, his second of the season.

Only four plays were needed on the Leopards' next drive to take their first lead (21-17) of the afternoon. Jordan ran for two yards on 1st-and-10 before he launched a 41-yard dart to a striding Persing to move into the red-zone. Jordan went back to the air on the next play and found Kuehner for 13 yards which set up Henley for a one-yard rush and his second score of the day. With 9:55 to go in the third quarter, the Maroon and White held a 21-17 advantage.

Fordham registered three first downs on its next drive, but a false start and stout defense on 3rd-and-long forced a punt from Dominic Sansone.

Troxell's group took over on its own 10-yard line and used 11 plays to extend its lead to 11 points (28-17). A pair of completions and a five-yard carry from Henley advanced the visitors to their own 30-yard line. On 3rd-and-5, Jordan zipped a pass to Kuehner for an eight-yard gain which led to a 38-yard grab for Kameron Vance two plays later. Now in the fourth quarter, Lafayette faced 2nd-and-10 on Fordham's 16-yard line. Jordan took it upon himself to extend the Maroon and White's lead with a 16-yard rush up the middle for his first career rushing TD.

Fordham responded with a 6:50 minute drive yet couldn't reduce its deficit as the Leopards' defense stood tall on 4th-and-17 to force a turnover on downs.

The change of possession positioned the Leopards on their 34-yard line, and a seven-play 51-yard drive resulted in Jack Simonetta's sole field goal of the day, converted from 26 yards.

The Rams earned two first downs on their final drive of the day before a three-yard tackle for a loss by Sean Kabengele set them back to 4th-and-6. Smith was looking for Reed downfield to move the chains, but Lafayette's defense held its ground to force another turnover on downs. With 1:52 remaining in Saturday's Patriot League matchup and zero timeouts for the hosts, the Leopards moved into victory formation to move to 3-4 overall and 2-2 in conference play.

Lafayette returns to its home gridiron next Saturday for a 12:30 p.m. kickoff and inaugural first Patriot League matchup with new conference foe Villanova.

 
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