(Shannon Welch/Staff Photographer)
The Wesleyan football team is off to a promising start this season, defeating Middlebury College 16-15 in a back-and-forth contest that came down to the final minutes of the game. The Cardinals’ win over the Panthers snaps a three-year losing streak against Middlebury, capped by last year’s loss, in which the Panthers scored in the final minutes of the game to beat the Cardinals 24-21. In 2010, Middlebury and Wesleyan tied in the standings, with both teams earning a 4-4 record.
Wesleyan took an early lead, scoring a touchdown just over five minutes into the game. Quarterback Matt Coyne ’12, one of three team captains, orchestrated the 71-yard drive, and running back Vince Miller ’12 completed the 11-play march with a five-yard run into the end zone. Miller finished the game with 17 carries for 64 yards while LaDarius Drew ’15 contributed heavily to the ground game as well. Drew carried the ball for 62 yards on eight runs, while Coyne picked up 80 yards on 12 carries of his own. The Cardinals rushed for 221 yards in the game, while the Panthers only managed 100 on the ground.
Middlebury failed to score for the remainder of the first quarter, but came up with two big strikes before the end of the half. The Panthers defense pushed Wesleyan into its own end zone, forcing a safety with just over two minutes left in the half. Middlebury quarterback McCallum Foote led the Panthers downfield following the safety and connected on a six-yard pass for a touchdown with 28 seconds remaining in the second quarter. The half ended with Middlebury up 8-7. Foote controlled the Panther offense, as he completed 26 of 50 passes for 228 yards and a touchdown on the day.
The Panthers came out strong in the second half, striking first halfway through the third quarter. The 10-play drive finished with a one-yard run into the end zone, as Middlebury increased its lead to eight. The Panthers failed to convert again, however.
Early in the fourth quarter, Wesleyan chipped away at the Panthers’ lead with a 34-yard field goal by Sebastian Aguirre ’14 that made the score 15-10. The Cardinal defense forced the Panthers to punt twice following Aguirre’s strike, but the Panthers still remained ahead. On Middlebury’s second punt, Te’Rhon O’Neal ’13 had a 26-yard return all the way to Middlebury’s 21-yard line. Coyne completed the offensive blow on three plays, including the final nine-yard run into the end zone.
The team hopes to improve upon its 1-0 record when it travels to Clinton, N.Y., to face the Hamilton Continentals on Oct 1.