Complete Game Notes

OPENING STATEMENTS
Coming off a season-opening loss at Lebanon Valley, the Bullets will look to bounce back on Saturday as they host the Ursinus College Bears in their home and Centennial Conference (CC) opener. It is the first time Gettysburg and Ursinus are meeting in a CC opener since the conference was formed in 1983.

ALL-TIME SERIES
Gettysburg leads Ursinus 31-19-4 in the all-time series that started in 1903. The Bullets are seeking their first win over the Bears since 2008.

THE COACHES
Gettysburg is coached by Barry Streeter, who is in his 33rd year at the helm of the Bullets. With 161 career victories, Streeter ranks 10th among active Division III coaches in wins. He is also 26th on the all-time Division III coaches win list.

The Bears are coached by Peter Gallagher, now in his 11th season in Collegeville. He is 48-55 at Ursinus and helped the Bears to a share of the Centennial Conference title last season.

LAST MEETING
Justin Decristofaro passed for 282 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for three additional TDs as Ursinus spoiled Gettysburg's homecoming, winning 49-39 last season. The Bears trailed 27-21 at halftime before outscoring Gettysburg 28-12 in the second half. Quarterback Kyle Whitmoyer paced Gettysburg, rushing for 62 yards and two touchdowns while passing for 189 yards and two TDs. The Bears clinched the game with a late 13-play, 65-yard drive that lasted 6:21, resulting in a touchdown with 2:13 left to make it a 49-33.

LAST TIME OUT
Lebanon Valley outscored Gettysburg 28-7 in the third quarter, breaking open a close game as the Bullets fell 57-42 in their season opener on Saturday in a non-conference affair in Annville. Gettysburg recorded a strong offensive game, using a balanced attack to pile up 460 total yards. Junior quarterback Kody Smith came off the bench to throw for three touchdown passes while sophomore receiver Aden Twer made eight catches for 87 yards in his first collegiate start. Five different Bullets scored a touchdown, with freshman wing Freddy Caruso scoring once on the ground and once through the air. Freshman receiver Bobby Romano, junior tailback Ted Delia, freshman tailback Nick Ulassin, and sophomore wing Jon Smoker all recorded one TD apiece. Ulassin also returned 10 kickoffs for 206 yards and finished with 275 all-purpose yards for the game. Senior Rob Pennella turned in a impressive performance punting, averaging 39.1 yards on nine attempts, including a career-long 58-yarder. He also intercepted a pass and went 4-for-4 on extra points.

Ursinus jumped to a 17-7 halftime lead, but Albright rallied to outscore the Bears 17-0 in the second half and capture a 24-17 victory, spoiling the first night game at Ursinus' Patterson Field on Saturday. The Bears put together a late drive, but it ended at the Albright-25, as the Lions made an interception with 37 seconds left. In his first collegiate start, sophomore quarterback Chris Curran went 18-for-34 with 193 yards and one touchdown and rushed for an additional TD. Senior linebacker Greg Martel had a big game defensively, making 11 tackles and one sack while recovering a fumble. Senior safety Mike Rissmiller added 10 tackles and one interception.

THE GETTYSBURG OFFENSE
The Bullets carry the Centennial Conference's leading rushing offense, which is ranked 20th in Division III, into Saturday's game after their 252-yard outing against LVC. Gettysburg is also second in the conference and 18th in Division III in scoring offense (42.0 ppg) and is third in the Centennial and 20th in the nation in total offense (460.0 ypg). Eight different players received at least one carry against the Dutchmen, with Ulassin leading the team with 57 yards on five carries, including a 45-yard touchdown run. Senior Kyle Whitmoyer started for the Bullets and went 3-for-9 with 41 to go with 42 rushing yards on eight carries. He gave way to Smith, who went 17-for-34 with 167 yards and three touchdowns. A total of seven Bullets caught a pass, led by Twer.

THE GETTYSBURG DEFENSE
Against Lebanon Valley Gettysburg forced a turnover on each of its first two defensive possessions of the season, but there were few highlights the rest of the way as the Dutchmen piled up over 500 yards of offense. Junior linebacker Larry DelViscio paced Gettysburg with nine tackles, including 2.5 for loss and one sack, while senior safeties Peter Hak and Joe Delaney each made eight hits. Senior cornerback Tyler Fasanella and junior linebacker Mark Covington each forced a fumble while senior cornerback Rob Pennella had an interception.

THE GETTYSBURG SPECIAL TEAMS
Pennella and Ulassin led the Bullets special teams unit against Lebanon Valley. Punting for the first time in two years, Pennella allowed the Dutchmen only four returns totaling 11 yards on his nine kicks. He also drilled all four of his extra-point attempts. Ulassin made all 10 of Gettysburg's kickoff returns, racking up 206 yards.

SCOUTING URSINUS
Ursinus brings back 13 starters from last season's team that finished in a three-way tie for the conference title (Muhlenberg received the Centennial's automatic bid into the NCAA tournament by virtue of a tiebreaker). The Bears also return seven All-Centennial Conference performers, including first-teamers Anthony Figueroa (center), Martel (linebacker), and Chris Rountree (cornerback). The Bears made their mark on defense a year ago, leading the conference in rushing defense (76.9 ypg) and total defense (257.9 ypg). Offensively, sophomore tailback Bryan Ellis returns after finishing as the Centennial Conference's fourth-leading rusher last season while junior Nick Giarratano and senior Al Desiderio each finished among the top-10 in the conference in receiving.