AMHERST, Mass. – In a battle of undefeated football teams, Amherst College got a combined five touchdowns from running back Eric Bunker '12 and quarterback Brian McMahon '12 to earn a 35-28 win over Trinity College Saturday afternoon at Pratt Field. 

Amherst carried a 21-0 advantage into halftime and held a 35-7 lead late in the third quarter, but the Bantams made a valiant comeback attempt by scoring the final 21 points of the game. In the midst of a promising drive with less than two minutes to play in the fourth quarter, the Bantams had their hopes dashed when Amherst's Landrus Lewis '13 intercepted a pass at the hosts' 19-yard line.

Bunker ran for 111 yards on only 16 carries (6.9 ypc) and scored twice, tying him for Amherst's single-season touchdown record of 11. Matt Rawson '12 became the Jeffs' all-time leader in points by a kicker by going 5-for-5 on extra point attempts, bringing his career scoring total to 153. 

Amherst had not allowed any opponent to run for 90 yards in a game this season, but the Bantams used their conference-leading rushing offense to pile up 286 yards on the ground. Evan Bunker '14 carried the load with 124 yards and two touchdowns, with quarterback Ryan Burgess '13 adding 77 yards and a TD. 

Trinity entered the game leading Division III in rush defense (34.0) and scoring defense (5.0 ppg), but the Jeffs picked up 146 yards on the ground to snap the Bantams' streak of 16 consecutive games without allowing a team to run for 100 yards. Saturday marked the first time since 2004 Amherst's running backs were able to crack the century mark against Trinity. 

The only points of the first quarter came when McMahon hit Wade McNamara '14 over the middle for a 14-yard touchdown pass, allowing Rawson to come on for his school-record 149th career point.

Amherst caught a break early in the second quarter when Trinity was called for roughing the kicker on a punt attempt, a critical play that led to a 14-yard touchdown run by McMahon with 13:50 on the clock.

The Jeffs again capitalized on a Bantam miscue when the visitors fumbled a punt return, allowing Gordie Lockbaum '12 to pick up the loose ball on Trinity's 9-yard line. Bunker ran in for a touchdown on the first play of the ensuing drive, giving the Jeffs a 21-0 lead with 8:59 to play in the second quarter. Neither team would score again in the first half, as the Bantams put together strong drives but were 0-for-3 on fourth down attempts.

Trinity needed less than two minutes to take back some of the game's momentum, as Burgess faked a handoff and took off to his left for a 56-yard touchdown run, making it a 21-7 game with 13:27 remaining in the third quarter.

The next four minutes marked the turning point of the game, however, as the Jeffs scored two touchdowns of at least 60 yards to break open a 35-7 lead. On the drive following Burgess's big run, Mike Samela '12 caught a pass at the Trinity 40-yard line with his back to the end zone. Samela turned and put his speed on display, pulling away from the Bantam defense for a 60-yard touchdown. 

On the first play from scrimmage following a Trinity punt, Bunker broke through for the biggest play of the day, a 75-yard touchdown run up the middle. Bunker out-ran a pair of Bantam defenders to make it a 28-point game with 8:56 to go in the third, marking a new career-long run and tying the school's single-season touchdown record in the process. 

Trinity could have easily rolled over after Lockbaum intercepted a Burgess pass in the end zone on the Bantams' next drive, but the visitors showed incredible poise by scoring the next 21 points of the contest. The comeback attempt began when linebacker Stephen Goniprow '14 blocked a punt, allowing Brendan Bader '14 to pounce on the ball at the Amherst 1-yard line. Evan Bunker took care of the rest, bringing the score to 35-14 with 3:07 remaining in the third. 

The Bantams closed out the third period with an interception by senior safety Matt Paskalides, who brought the ball down to the Amherst 29. The turnover led to another Evan Bunker touchdown run, this time from six yards out. Bunker was stopped to his right, but he cut back to his left and made it a 35-21 game with 14:08 to go. 

Paskalides once again came through for the Bantam defense, this time intercepting McMahon along the right sideline and returning the ball to the Amherst 30. Facing 4th-and-goal from the 2-yard line, Burgess lofted a pass to tight end Allen Even '12 in the back of the end zone, cutting the visitors' deficit to only seven (35-28) with 5:21 left in regulation.

Amherst was able to kill a good chunk of the clock by picking up first downs, thanks to a Trinity face mask penalty and a pair of pivotal 3rd-and-11 catches by Samela and Ben Kettering '12. The Jeffs would get as close as the 13-yard line, but a Rawson field goal attempt from 32 yards out was blocked by Mark Snyder '12, giving the Bantams the ball back with only 2:21 to work with. 

Facing 1st-and-10 from their own 48-yard line, the Bantams were finally laid to rest when Burgess was picked off by Lewis at the Amherst 19. With 1:26 remaining, the Jeffs were able to take a knee and run out the rest of the game clock. 

McMahon finished 22-of-42 for 250 yards and three touchdowns, two passing and one rushing. Burgess was 18-of-34 for 169 yards and two scores (one passing), while each quarterback was intercepted twice in the game. Samela led all receivers with 92 yards on five catches, while Andrew Reed '12 caught three balls for 49 yards, moving him past the 1,000-yard marker for his career (1,019). 

Paskalides stood out with his two interceptions, while Goniprow had a team-high 10 tackles and Snyder recorded 3.5 tackles for loss. Amherst's Sam Clark '13 had 14 tackles on the afternoon, with Kevin Heller '12 adding 13 stops and a pair of pass breakups. 

Guaranteed at least a share of the NESCAC title, Amherst will close out its season next Saturday by traveling to take on Williams College (5-2). Trinity, which can still claim a share of the conference crown, will put its 42-game home win streak on the line when it hosts Wesleyan Saturday at Jessee/Miller Field. 

Prior to the game Amherst honored its 18 seniors, who have posted a 26-5 record in their four years.

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