Box Score COLLEGE
FOOTBALL FINAL SCORE
Colby 34, Tufts 31
At Waterville, ME
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Game
Statistics
WATERVILLE, Me. -- Colby quarterback Nick Kmetz (Laurel, DE)
threw four touchdown passes to three different receivers in the
second half as the Colby College football team clinched at least a
.500 season with a 34-31 victory over Tufts University in the home
finale at Seaverns Field at Harold Alfond Stadium on Saturday.
Colby (4-3) also clinched at least a tie for a
Colby-Bates-Bowdoin (CBB) Championship after Bates College took a
28-24 win over Bowdoin College. The Mules, who took a 34-27 win
against Bates last Saturday, can win the CBB title outright with a
victory at Bowdoin next Saturday at 12:30 p.m. in the season
finale. Tufts (2-5) will close out the season next Saturday at home
against Middlebury College at noon.
Colby has won three straight games for the first time since
winning four straight to end the 2005 season with a 7-1 record. The
Mules have scored 84 points in the past three games after scoring
just 92 points in eight games last year.
On Saturday, Kmetz exploded for the four touchdowns in the
second half and finished with 273 yards on 16 for 26 passing. He
also ran for 53 yards and finished the game with 326 yards of total
offense. Colby was ranked third (286.8 yards allowed) and Tufts was
fourth (291.3) in the NESCAC in total defense entering the game.
However, the Mules racked up 451 yards of offense and Tufts had 354
for a combined 805 yards.
The Jumbos appeared to take control of the game when junior
running back Pat Bailey (Beverly, MA) broke free
for a 94-yard touchdown run with 9:01 left in the third quarter for
a 21-7 Tufts lead. Bailey had a huge game with 109 yards of rushing
and seven catches for 74 yards to go along with two scores.
Kmetz started to get hot from that point on with an aerial show.
The Mules immediately drove down the field and Kmetz hooked up with
Matt Hellinger (Wilbraham, MA) on a 26-yard pass play with 6:20 to
play in the third. Dan Prunier (Merrimack, NH), one of Colby's 14
seniors playing their final home game, had a 24-yard catch on the
drive to help set up the score.
Tufts took a chance at a fourth and one at midfield on the next
drive, but Colby's defense stiffened and the Mules took over on
downs. Seven plays later, Kmetz found tight end Nat Carson
(Winfield, IL) for another 26-yard scoring pass to tie the game at
21-21. The touchdown came on a fourth and two play with 1:38 to
play in the third.
After forcing a punt, Colby went to work again and took the lead
for good when Patrick Burns (Charles Town, WV) caught a 29-yard
touchdown pass from Kmetz with 12:43 to play to cap a five-play,
64-yard drive. Burns also caught an 11-yard pass and Kmetz added a
13-yard run on the drive. However, the Mules missed the extra point
and the lead was just six points at 27-21.
Tufts settled down and went 40 yards on eight plays to cut the
lead to 27-24 on a 25-yard field goal by sophomore Adam Auerbach (Glen Rock, NJ) with 9:08 to play. Colby refused
to get conservative on the next drive and the move paid off when
Kmetz found Hellinger on a 41-yard scoring pass to end a 68-yard
scoring drive with 5:54 to play. The Mules had four rushes for 18
yards on the drive and Hellinger caught one pass for nine
yards.
The offensive fireworks continued though, as Tufts used just
2:28 off the clock and got a 14-yard scoring pass from quarterback
Tom McManama (Westfield, MA) to junior receiver
Steve Cusano (Waltham, MA) with 3:19 to play.
Cusano caught four passes on the drive and Bailey had 24 yards of
rushing on just two carries. The Jumbos elected to not use an
on-side kick with two timeouts remaining. Colby, though, got a
first down and used six rushing plays to use up the rest of the
clock. Prunier had the key carry, an 11-yard rush on third and 1 to
give the Mules the ball at their own 47-yard line.
Both teams had come out strong on their opening drives of the
game. The Mules mixed the run and pass nicely and got rewarded when
Prunier ran in from one yard out for a touchdown for a 7-0 lead.
Tufts took over and also scored on its first drive after a 48-yard
kickoff return by Bailey helped the Jumbos start on Colby's 31-yard
line. Bailey added a 26-yard run to get the ball inside the 10-yard
line and then scored from four yards out to tie the contest at
7-7.
After Colby gave up the ball on downs at the Tufts 33-yard line,
the Jumbos quickly got their second score of the game. Tufts was
aided by a 15-yard personal foul penalty on Colby during the drive.
The Jumbos got in the end zone when McManama hit Noah Hatfield-Biondo (Southampton, NY) on a four-yard scoring
pass with 10:28 to play in the opening quarter.
The scoring settled down after that and Tufts took the 14-7 lead
into halftime. However, the Jumbos missed a golden opportunity to
go up by two scores when sophomore lineman Donnie Simmons
(Houston, TX) forced a fumble by Kmetz on the Mules'
17-yard line. A holding penalty on the Jumbos stalled the short
drive and Auerbach missed left on a 32-yard field goal attempt.
Hellinger finished with five catches for 107 yards and two
touchdowns for the Mules, while Burns had five grabs for 81 yards.
Prunier had 77 yards of rushing and added 24 receiving. McManama
was efficient with 24 for 29 passing for 170 yards and two scores
for Tufts. Cusano caught eight balls for 50 yards.
Chris Copeland (Rexford, NY) led Colby's defense with 10
tackles, while fellow senior Lamont Henry (Virginia Beach, VA)
added eight stops. Junior linebacker Matt Murray (Winthrop,
MA) paced Tufts with 10 tackles, while Simmons had eight
tackles and a pair of sacks.
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