Coming off their highest scoring output of the season, the Bates football team looks to make a splash Saturday in Williamstown, Mass. against the defending NESCAC champion Williams College Ephs.
The Ephs (1-5) have lost four straight games since defeating Bowdoin 24-14 in week two. They rank eighth in the NESCAC in both scoring offense (16.5 points scored per game) and scoring defense (23.7 points allowed per game). After putting up 28 points last week, the Bobcats (2-4) are seventh in the conference in scoring offense (18.3 points per game) but rank 10th in scoring defense at 31.8 points allowed per game. If the Bobcats can get the victory, they will have matched their win total from last year with two games remaining after Saturday's contest.
Bates senior Christian Olivieri (Hull, Mass.) is fifth in the NESCAC in receiving, averaging 82.2 yards per game while sophomore quarterback Colton Bosselait (Westminster, Mass.) ranks fourth in the conference in passing at 225.2 yards per game.
The Bobcats can expect a run-heavy offense from the hosts, as Williams averages 155.5 rushing yards per game, second in the NESCAC. Meanwhile, their passing offense is last in the conference, as the Ephs only average 133.8 yards per game through the air.
Bobcat senior captain Tony Hooks (New Rochelle, N.Y.) still leads the NESCAC in tackles at 11.2 per contest. Coleston Smith paces Williams with 6.7 tackles per game.
THE PARTICULARS:
What: Bates (2-4) vs. Williams (1-5)
When: Saturday, Oct. 29, 1 p.m.
Where: Farley-Lamb Field (Williamstown, Mass.)
Live Coverage: Video | Stats
All-Time Series: Williams leads 27-6
Previous Meeting: Williams 38, Bates 21 (Oct. 23, 2021 in Lewiston, Maine)
WILLIAMS LAST WEEK:
The Trinity Bantams improved to 6-0 with a 32-13 win over visiting Williams. Williams was left scoreless in the second half, while Trinity was able to extend their 3-point halftime lead by two scores in the fourth quarter to put the game away.
After a quick three and out from Williams to start the game, Trinity drove the field on their opening drive on a 13-play, 63-yard advance finished off by a six-yard rushing touchdown from running back Will Kirby. The ensuing PAT was no good. 6-0 Trinity.
Williams responded with a long drive of their own (14 plays, 75 yards), retiring the rest of the first quarter and capitalizing on the first play of the second quarter with a one yard touchdown run from senior captain Dan Vaughn. This was Vaughn's first career start at quarterback, and he directed several impressive drives throughout the game. He finished the game 10-18 passing for 118 yards with 73 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Mike DeGasperis led the Ephs with 3 receptions for 52 yards, including an acrobatic 36 yard snag down the sideline.
After a blocked PAT following Williams' first score, the game was even at 6. Trinity followed up on their next drive with another long drive that ended with a 27-yard field goal from kicker Matthew Jumes to break the tie and put Trinity up 9-6.
A few possessions later, Williams forced a Trinity punt that hit an Eph return player that was recovered by the Bantams, giving them the ball at the Williams 35-yard line. On the following play, Trinity scored on a 35-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Dinapoli on a trick-play end around. The PAT was good, and the score was 16-6.
Dan Vaughn and the Ephs answered back with a 2 yard Vaughn touchdown run following a 6-minute, 75 yard drive down to Trinity's goal. Sophomore Ivan Shuran buried the PAT, trimming Trinity's lead 16-13. This was Williams' final score of the game.
Following a scoreless third quarter, Trinity kicker Jumes knocked in another 27-yard field goal to extend the Bantam lead 19-13. After a Williams punt, Trinity QB Spencer Fetter found Senior Receiver Devante Reid on a 22-yard touchdown pass. Fetter finished the day 16-24 passing with 220 yards and two touchdowns. Trinity finished the day with 437 yards of total offense compared to Williams' 195.
The final score of the game came on a two yard touchdown run from Trinity's Tyler Dinapoli, for his second score of the game. This and the ensuing PAT brought the score to 32-13.
BATES LAST WEEK:
Sophomore quarterback Colton Bosselait tied a Bates football program record with 31 completions, and senior wide receiver Christian Olivieri shattered the team mark for receptions with 17, in the Bobcats' 40-28 loss to Middlebury College Saturday afternoon at Garcelon Field.
Bosselait (Westminster, Mass.) tied a team mark originally set in 2009 by Trevor Smith '13, when Smith completed 31 passes against Colby. Olivieri (Hull, Mass.) now sits alone atop the single-game reception list having eclipsed the previous high-water mark of 12, a total achieved on four separate occasions. Jason Coulie '00 caught 12 passes in a game twice, last doing so in 1999 vs. Wesleyan.
The Panthers (5-1) opened the scoring at 10:43 in the first quarter when Donovan Wood secured a 26-yard pass from Cole Kennon for the game's first touchdown.
Mohamed Diawara (Philadelphia, Pa.) soared for a leaping one-yard TD catch from Bosselait at the 2:49 mark, capping a nine-play 70-yard drive by the Bobcats and knotting the score at 7-7 heading into the second.
A pair of Bates' turnovers proved to be detrimental early in the second quarter. An interception by Middlebury's Liam High on the visiting team's 48-yard line caused an abrupt end to the Bobcats' six-play drive. The Panthers proceeded to author a swift 1:27 touchdown drive of their own, set up by a 46-yard pass reception by Patrick Jamin (86 yards receiving), and finalized when Charles Armstrong secured a one-yard touchdown toss by Kennon.
Trailing 13-7 after a missed Middlebury extra-point attempt clanked the left upright, Bates looked to take advantage of the miscue. The garnet-and-white would not get the opportunity, however, as Teddy Daniel forced a fumble on the subsequent kickoff return, a loose ball that was pounced upon by Middlebury's John Greenburg at the Bates 18-yard line.
It would take Middlebury exactly 16 seconds and one play to net its third TD of the day, this time an 18-yard touchdown catch by tight end Anson Clough with 11:08 to go before the half. Another missed extra point by the Panthers' Andrew Haas, this time off the right upright, made it 19-7 Middlebury.
Not going away, the 'Cats immediately countered with a healthy eight-play, 70-yard push up the field, culminating with a 14-yard Bosselait hookup with Jackson Hayes (San Marino, Calif.) to slice the deficit to five (19-14) after the successful extra point by Archie Green Jr. (Upland, Calif.). The touchdown marked the third of the season for the senior receiver, and second in as many games.
Middlebury immediately matched its host's 70-yard march with one of its own as the Panthers put together a 12-play drive, ending with the team's second one-yard touchdown pass reception, this time to WR Greg Livingston (84 yards receiving) with 1:28 to go in the half.
The Bobcats, looking to inch slightly closer before the halftime horn, mounted a nine-drive, 67-yard drive to set up a 25-yard field goal attempt with 11 ticks on the clock. Green, Jr.'s effort would be blocked by the Panthers, keeping the score 26-14 Middlebury heading into intermission.
The squads would again trade touchdowns within the first 4:37 of the third quarter to put the score at 33-21 Panthers with 10:23 to go in the session. Diawara accounted for the Bates TD, a 25-yard reception that closed out a tidy three-play, 75-yard drive for the garnet-and-white. The stage was set for Diawara's team-leading fifth touchdown of the year after TE Steven Guerrette's (Jr.-Bow, N.H.) 46-yard reception the play before.
The 'Cats, which have not proved victorious vs. Middlebury since the 1988 campaign, would alternate punts with the Panthers over the next three possessions before Bates snapped the offensive slump with a seven-play, 64-yard touchdown drive to slip to within five of its guest.
The scoring effort consisted of four successful slings to Olivieri, the fourth of which snapped the team single-game reception record and represented an 11-yard TD for the senior.
With Middlebury now clinging to a 33-28 surplus heading into the fourth quarter, the offense would stall in the first two possessions for each. It would be the Panthers that would awaken first, doing so with 3:28 remaining in regulation as a 12-yard TD catch by Carter Stockwell put the visitors ahead by 12 and, ultimately, sealed the hard-fought "W".
In a contest that would experience 882 total yards (686 through the air), it would be Cole Kennon's five touchdown passes that would make the difference in the outcome. The Middlebury QB recorded 326 passing yards, hitting 26 of his 43 attempts.
BATES' AND WILLIAMS' LAST MEETING:
Senior quarterback Brendan Costa threw a pair of touchdown passes and ran for a game-high 88 yards and a touchdown in the Bates football team's 38-21 loss to the undefeated Williams College Ephs at Garcelon Field.
Costa (Westport, Mass.) completed 19 of 38 passes for a game-high 231 yards in the contest. The Bobcats fell behind 17-0 before cutting the deficit to 10 with 7:30 remaining in the third quarter on a 40-yard strike from Costa to senior Liam Kelly (Milton, Mass.) for the latter's first collegiate touchdown catch.
The Ephs answered on the ensuing drive. Mario Fischetti returned the kickoff 47 yards to the Bates 45. Then on third and one from the Bates 36, Joel Nicholas took the handoff and ran between the tackles 36 yards for the touchdown, putting the Ephs up by 17 again after the extra point.
Nicholas was the offensive star for Williams, accounting for three touchdowns. He ran the ball 10 times for a team-high 66 yards and two scores. He also caught a 12-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Bobby Maimaron. Maimaron completed 10 of 15 passes for 184 yards and a touchdown.
Bates went three-and-out after Nicholas' touchdown run and the Williams offense went back to work after an 11-yard punt set the Ephs up with great field position at the Bates 38. Dan Vaughn ran the ball 15 yards to the Bates 23 and Fischetti rushed for 11 yards to the Bates 12. That's when Maimaron connected with Nicholas on a swing pass to the left. Nicholas beat the defense to the far sideline and scampered inside the pylon for the touchdown, making the score 31-7 in favor of the Ephs with 2:57 left in the third quarter after the extra point.
The Ephs added another score early in the fourth quarter on a Vaughn four-yard touchdown run.
Down 38-7, the Bates offense came alive after the Vaughn touchdown thanks in part to Costa's legs. On second and 10 from the Bates 34, Costa scrambled 16 yards to midfield. Then on fourth and six from the Williams 46, he found Christian Olivieri (Hull, Mass.) for 10 yards and a first down. On third and eight from the Williams 34, Costa delivered his longest rush of the afternoon, racing 28 yards to the Williams 6. One play later, Costa ran the ball in from four yards out for his fourth rushing touchdown of the season.
Still up 38-14, the Ephs were content to simply run the ball with Fischetti on their next drive. But on third and seven from midfield, linebacker Tony Hooks (New Rochelle, N.Y.) sacked backup QB Jackson Bischoping, forcing a punt.
Taking over at their own 15, the Bobcats matriculated the ball down the field, highlighted by a pair of connections between Costa and his younger brother Chis Costa (Westport, Mass.) for gains of 25 and 10 yards respectively. Costa ran the ball to the Williams 16 and hooked up with tight end Alexander Suny (North Reading, Mass.) for a 16-yard touchdown on a throw to the back right corner of the end zone. It marked Suny's third career catch and his first career touchdown.
Suny's touchdown came with less than a minute to go in regulation so the Ephs were able to run out the clock, securing the 38-21 win over Bates.
BATES' PROBABLE STARTERS
OFFENSE
LT 73 Peter Simplicio Jr. 6-5 280
LG 76 Quinn Woods Sr. 6-2 275
C 71 Nick Florio Sr. 6-0 265
RG 77 Cameron Winslow Sr. 6-4 306
RT 63 Cole De Magistris Jr. 6-4 270
TE 89 Steven Guerrette Jr. 6-3 225
WR 7 Mohamed Diawara Sr. 6-1 180
WR 32 Christian Olivieri Sr. 5-11 200
WR 1 Jackson Hayes Sr. 5-9 165
QB 8 Colton Bosselait So. 6-0 200
RB 33 Jamil Mouehla So. 5-11 190
DEFENSE
DL 94 Matthew Juneau So. 6-1 220
DL 98 Kyle Hamilton Jr. 6-3 230
DL 93 Drew Kremhelmer So. 6-0 275
DL 52 Jack Ryan Sr. 6-2 255
LB 17 Thomas Formus Sr. 6-0 205
LB 5 Tony Hooks Sr. 6-1 225
LB 23 George Hawkins III Jr. 6-1 205
CB 21 Owen Straley Sr. 5-9 165
CB 2 Mohamed Coulibaly Sr. 6-0 180
S 24 Jarrin Sato Jr. 5-8 170
S 14 Jose Calleja Sr. 5-10 175
SPECIALIST
P/K 35 Archie Green Jr. Jr. 5-11 190
WILLIAMS' PROBABLE STARTERS
OFFENSE
WR 13 Jack Ledden So. 5-10 180
QB 19 Dan Vaughn Sr. 6-2 205
WR 5 Mike DeGasperis Sr. 6-1 195
WR 44 Michael Bedard Jr. 6-2 260
HB 27 Will Sheskey Jr. 5-11 205
LG 70 Cam Maguire Fy. 6-3 260
RG 51 Xander Utecht Sr. 6-2 275
LT 77 John Freeman Jr. 6-4 300
RT 54 Tim Forth Jr. 6-5 270
RB 23 Joel Nicholas Sr. 5-11 205
C 64 Tallon Garelli Sr. 6-2 320
DEFENSE
DL 97 Calvin Jackson Jr. 6-2 245
DL 93 Ian Devine Sr. 6-2 250
DL 95 C.J. Vilfort Jr. 6-1 270
LB 43 Desmond O'Mahony Sr. 5-10 215
DB 41 Alex Dehmel Sr. 5-10 180
LB 49 Tim Landolfi Jr. 6-1 215
LB 48 Coleston Smith Sr. 6-1 225
DB 16 Drew Michalek Sr. 5-10 190
DB 35 Justice McGrail Fy. 5-10 175
DB 8 James Hemmer Jr. 6-0 215
LB 7 Ethan Scott So. 6-1 215
SPECIALISTS
P 89 Tim Brown Jr. 6-0 230
K 4 Ivan Shuran So. 5-11 175
