DAVIDSON – It was the opener of the 2021 Pioneer Football
League slate for the Davidson. Opposing the Wildcats were the Toreros of San
Diego, a traditional league power who desperately wanted to avenge the pandemic-forced
spring 2021 season which saw Davidson knock off the four-time defending Pioneer
League champs to claim the conference championship for the first time ever. It
was Davidson who would take the day, as the Wildcats held off a late rally to
defeat the Toreros 28-16 at Richardson Stadium.

Davidson had what seemed to be a great start to the game,
forcing a three-and-out and taking over after a punt. The momentum was short-lived, however, and a bad pitch on the Wildcats' second play from scrimmage saw
the ball hit the turf, recovered by the San Diego defense. Two plays later,
Emilio Martinez ran in from thirteen yards out to give the visitors an early
7-0 lead.

The Wildcats went into full ball control mode later in the quarter,
though, marching eighty-three yards on sixteen plays on a drive that ended the
first quarter and began the second. By the time junior Dylan Sparks scored on a
one-yard run, Davidson had chewed off nearly nine minutes of clock and kept a
potent Torero offense on the sidelines.

It was the San Diego special teams that made the biggest
play in the second quarter, though. After coming up short on a run, the Toreros
chose to punt from midfield. The punt rolled down towards the goal line and was
batted out of bounds inside the one-yard line. The San Diego defense stepped up
on the next play, tackling the Davidson ball carrier in the end zone for a
safety and 9-7 lead. After the ensuing free kick, the Toreros sought to extend
their lead with a field goal, but the kick bounced off the right upright.

Davidson started the second half with eight straight rushing
plays before Louis Calosimo was able to find Eli Turner, Jr. lurking behind the
defense, and the two connected on a thirty-one-yard pass to get the Wildcats
inside the five-yard line. Two plays later, Mark McCurdy went around the left
side for the Davidson touchdown and the Wildcats had the lead for the first
time on the afternoon. Davidson had a chance to extend the lead later in the
quarter, but a bad snap on a field goal attempt gave the ball back to the Toreros
and saw the score stay at 14-9 going into the final quarter.

San Diego refused to give up and came within five points
after an eleven-yard touchdown pass from Mason Randall to Michael Carner. The
Toreros had another chance late in the quarter but was stopped on fourth down
by the tenacious Davidson defense. Looking to put the game on ice, Louis
Colosimo found Eli Turner, Jr. on a twenty-five-yard slant route for a
touchdown to cap the scoring, and Jordan Burrell picked off a late pass to seal
the deal for Davidson.

Up Next

Both teams are staying in Pioneer League play as Davidson (2-1,
1-0) travels to Florida to take on the Hatters of Stetson University while San
Diego (0-4, 0-1) hosts league newcomer St. Thomas.

DELAND, FL. – Davidson rattled off 20 consecutive second-half points and held off a late Stetson rally to pick up a Pioneer Football League opening win Saturday at Spec Martin Memorial Stadium, 26-20.

With the win, Davidson improves to 1-1 and opens the conference slate at 1-0, while with the loss Stetson begins the season 0-1.

“There’s too really tough things in sports and in football, one is winning on the road, and two is winning your first game of the year … especially after a heartbreaking loss at Elon. Really proud of this win. Really proud of our guys,” said head coach Scott Abell after the victory formation sealed it.  

Trailing 7-6 at the break, the Wildcats got in their groove in the third, scoring touchdowns on three consecutive drives to open the half. 

The ‘Cats first found the end zone when senior quarterback Tyler Phelps hit junior wide receiver Jalen Staples with a fade to the back corner of the end zone just 1:34 into the third. After a defensive stop on Stetson’s ensuing possession, the ‘Cats leaned on Phelps legs for four carries with the final taking him across the goal line, extending the lead, 20-7.

With the game seemingly in hand, Davidson’s defense stepped up big. Freshman Jonathan Hammond sacked Hatter quarterback Alex Piccirilli on fourth down to give the ball back to the offense. Hammond has been a force as a freshman for the ‘Cats, making his first career interception earlier in the game and previously forcing a fumble at Elon back in February.

Back on offense, Davidson needed just two plays to add six to the scoreboard. Junior running back Coy Williams darted off on a 43-yard scamper and classmate Eli Turner Jr. turned on the jets to finish off the final 25 yards with a catch and scamper to put his squad up, 26-7.

Stetson did make things interesting late, scoring touchdowns on back-to-back fourth-quarter possessions, helped along by an onside kick recovery, but the Davidson damage was too great to overcome.

The first half was full of special team highlights. Stetson marched down the field on their opening drive and was in position for a chip shot field goal, but senior Jaylon Bolden had other plans, blocking the kick to keep the Hatters from getting on the board early.

Wildcat sophomore kicker Caden Bonoffski showed off his leg, connecting on a 48-yard field goal try, one yard shy of his career-long. The local product added a 26-yard kick to keep the ‘Cats momentum rolling in the second quarter.

Davidson finished with 297 yards rushing out of 389 yards of total offense. Phelps led the ground game with 120 yards, while Williams chipped in 83. Phelps completed 7-of-10 passes for 92 yards, connecting with Staples four times for 55 yards and the score.

Defensively, junior’s Jalen Jefferson and Jake Alexander led the way with 10 tackles apiece. Alexander forced a fumble in the second quarter, recovered by classmate Cade Vela. 

Davidson makes their home debut Saturday, Mar. 20 against Presbyterian in PFL action at Richardson Stadium. Kick off from Stephen B. Smith Field is slated for 1 p.m.