September 25, 2004
AMHERST, MA - The Amherst College football team racked up 592 yards of total offense and held visiting NESCAC rival Hamilton College to just 77 yards en route to a lopsided 44-7 win in both teams' season opener on Saturday. Hamilton's lone touchdown snapped a string of three straight Amherst shutouts in the series and marked the first time the Lord Jeffs have failed to register a shutout in a season opener since 1999.
Amherst ignited the rout with a pair of touchdowns in the opening quarter, taking a 7-0 lead on a 43-yard rumble by senior tailback Fletcher Ladd (Amherst, NH) and pulling ahead 14-0 on a 29-yard scoring strike from senior quarterback Marsh Moseley (New Orleans, LA) to senior wideout Jay Wagstaff (Tewksbury, MA), who made a spectacular juggling catch and held on despite being clobbered in the end zone. The Jeffs then stretched the lead to 21-0 in the second quarter with a 10-play, 81-yard drive, capped by a five-yard plunge by senior tailback Matt Monteith (Madison, CT).
Hamilton managed to cut the lead to 21-7 at the half on a 12-yard touchdown grab by rookie wideout Joe Rinaldo (Canastota, NY), but the Jeffs put the game out of reach with 23 unanswered points after the break. Monteith and junior tailback Ngai Otieno (Gloucester, MA) highlighted the second-half barrage with a pair of six-yard touchdown runs, while senior place-kicker David Bodner (Atlantic Beach, NY) drilled a 30-yard field goal and first-year receiver Mike Myers (Foxboro, MA) hauled in a 15-yard touchdown pass from reserve sophomore signal caller Nick Kehoe (Washington Depot, CT).
Amherst's ground attack was dominant. Ladd led the way with 129 yards on 13 carries, followed by Monteith with 89 yards on 11 carries, sophomore Will Beeson (Kansas City, MO) with 63 yards on eight carries, Otieno with 47 yards on nine carries and rookie Chris Gillyard (Baltimore, MD) with 40 yards on 10 carries. Ladd is now just 107 yards shy of the college's career rushing record of 2,916, held by Josh Mason '97. Moseley was workmanlike at quarterback, connecting on 11 of 19 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown, while Kehoe was 4-for-5 for 38 yards and a touchdown off the bench. Wagstaff had a great all-around game with six catches for 119 yards and a touchdown. He also returned three punts for 30 yards and two kickoffs for 37 yards.
Senior inside linebacker Dave Borgonzi (Everett, MA) led the way on defense, pacing the Jeffs with 12 tackles, including one for loss, and a pass deflection, while junior outside linebacker Justin Roemer (Jupiter, FL) chipped in with nine takedowns. Senior cornerback Rob Walsh (Fair Lawn, NJ) paced the secondary with four tackles, an interception and an ensuing 18-yard return that set up the game's first touchdown.
Hamilton managed just 35 rushing yards and 42 yards passing. Junior quarterback Brandon Holtslag (Whitesboro, NY) finished 8-for-18 passing with a 12-yard touchdown toss to his credit. On defense, first-year defensive back Matt Pitarresi (New Hartford, NY) tallied a game-high 21 tackles, including nine unassisted, in his first collegiate game.
Amherst returns to action next Saturday at 1 p.m. at NESCAC rival Bowdoin College.
BOX SCORE/PLAY-BY-PLAY
