THE FACTS
Gettysburg (2-2, 1-0 CC) 20, McDaniel (1-3, 0-1 CC) 7
What: Centennial Conference (CC) football game
When: Friday, Oct. 4
Where: Gettysburg, Pa.
THE SKINNY STORY
The Gettysburg defense scored on a pair of interceptions returned for touchdowns in the second half to provide the difference in a 20-7 win over McDaniel in the Centennial Conference opener for both teams.
THE LEADERS
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Nate DeLorenzo (Virginia Beach, Va./Norfolk Academy) had the first pick-6 for the Bullets while adding a team-high nine tackles to go with a pass breakup.
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Nathan LaRosa (Montpelier, Vt./Montpelier) sealed the victory with the second interception returned for a score, adding a pass breakup and four stops.
FOR THE FOES
• Angel Granada led the Green Terror with a 17-for-30 night for 175 yards but had the two interceptions and just one touchdown. He also ran the ball 20 times for 82 yards.
THE REST OF THE STORY
• After Gettysburg went three-and-out on its first series, McDaniel put together an 11-play drive that marched into the red zone but the Bullets defense got a stop on third-and-20 and the Green Terror pushed a 34-yard field goal attempt wide right. Taking over at its own 20,
Rocco Abdinoor (Edgewater, Md./St. Mary's Annapolis) engineered an 11-play drive of his own but Gettysburg was able to pay off the drive with a three-yard
Michael Zrelak (Monroe, N.Y./Monroe-Woodbury) run up the middle. The PAT was tipped at the line, however, to keep it a 6-0 game with 1:06 to play in the opening quarter.
• McDaniel responded with a nine-play, 62-yard drive that ended with a four-yard touchdown grab by Kyle Silver. Falling down on the attempt, Connor Schoene still got the ball over the crossbar for a 7-6 lead with 11:35 showing in the second quarter. The Green Terror drove to the Bullets 5 with 2:27 to play in the opening half but the Gettysburg defense came up with a stop on fourth-and-1 for a turnover on downs. The teams then traded three-and-outs before connected with
Jason Roskam (Randolph, N.J./Randolph) for 20 yards then scampered for another 13 to move inside the McDaniel 20. However, the half ended before the hosts could find the end zone.
• A turnover on fourth down gave McDaniel the ball near midfield midway through the third quarter. Three plays later,
Nate DeLorenzo picked off the pass and sprinted 52 yards down the far side for a 12-7 lead with 6:10 remaining.
• With the ball at its own 9 after an interception that caromed off the intended receiver, McDaniel moved 19 yards in four plays but
Nathan LaRosa stepped in front and took a second pick to the house. The two-point conversion was successful for a 20-7 lead with 8:25 to play. The Gettysburg defense forced another three-and-out and the offense turned to its running game, milking 6 minutes, 20 seconds off the clock over 11 plays before the Green Terror had one last chance but only 61 seconds remaining, down two scores.
THE INSIDE STORY
• It was the first-ever night game hosted by Gettysburg at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium. It was the 22nd time the Bullets had played a Friday night game.
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Nate DeLorenzo recorded his second pick-6 of the season and third defensive score of 2024.
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Peter Schelling finished with 66 yards rushing on 11 carries while
Michael Zrelak had 56 yards on 14 totes. As a team, the Bullets finished with a 137-126 edge in the run game while the Green Terror had the overall edge in total yards, 301-248.
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Josh Burke (Cohasset, Mass./Cohasset) reeled in five passes for a career-high 56 yards.
NEXT UP
Gettysburg returns to action at home against No. 21 Johns Hopkins on Friday. Game time is 7 p.m.
