Contact: Ben Badua

AMHERST, Mass. - Amherst football closed out its 2012 season and 121 years on Pratt Field with a thrilling 23-20 victory over archrival Williams on Saturday afternoon.

Playing the last game on their natural turf, the Jeffs improved to 29-27-3 against the Ephs at home to preserve their winning record against Williams on Pratt before the historic site undergoes a major renovation this offseason. The Ephs still hold the series edge, 71-51-5, but Amherst has now won three of the last four showdowns dating back to 2009.

Sophomore quarterback Max Lippe completed 12-of-21 passes for 153 yards and a touchdown, while running for two others. Jonathan Pieterse '16 connected on 5-of-8 attempts for 77 yards, while Jake O'Malley '14 hauled in five catches for 87 yards. Brian Ragone '16 added 72 yards on three receptions, while James Durham '13 had 39 yards and a touchdown.

Outgaining Williams 407-343, Sean Wilson '16 led all Amherst rushers with 127 yards on 21 carries (6.0 ypc). Steven Jellison '14 added 36 yards on 13 touches (2.8 ypc), as the Jeffs finished with a 177-143 edge on the ground.

Wide receiver Darren Hartwell '13 paced the Eph offense, racking up 191 all-purpose yards, including 106 in the return game. Quarterback Tom Murphy '15 completed 13-of-26 for 171 yards, a touchdown and an interception, while Alex Scyocurka '14 led Williams with 135 yards rushing on 25 carries (4.9 ypc).

Forcing Amherst into a three-and-out on its first possession, Williams began its second drive on the Jeffs' 39-yardline. Taking a shot downfield, Murphy hit Hartwell in stride, giving the Ephs a 7-0 lead.

Answering midway through the first quarter, Amherst pieced together an eight-play, 50-yard scoring drive. Getting the ball back on a Travis Dickenson '13 fumble recovery, the Jeffs ran three-straight running plays to set up a first-and-10 from the Williams 39. Connecting on a pair of passes for 26 yards to O'Malley, Lippe punched it in from two yards out, taking a quarterback keeper off right tackle for his fifth rushing touchdown of the season.

Forcing an Amherst punt on its next possession, Hartwell ripped off a 33-yard return up the right sideline to give the Ephs great starting field position on the Jeffs' 28. After a pair of Scyocurka six-yard runs, Murphy tossed it to Marco Hernandez '14, but the running back stopped short of the edge and floated a 16-yard pass to Hartwell to put the Ephs' back on top with 3:05 to go in the opening quarter.

After exchanging field goals early in the second to make it 17-10, Williams hoped to take advantage of an illegal substitution on a fourth-and-5 that gave them a new set of downs. Murphy responded with three-straight completions putting the Ephs on the Amherst 32 with under 30 seconds remaining in the half. Looking to his left, the sophomore signal-caller tried to thread a pass to Richie Beaton '14, but Robbie Heflin '13 stepped in front, picking off his fifth of the season to end the Williams threat.

Jumping on a Jellison fumble on the Jeffs' first possession in the third quarter, Scyocurka and Tom Wohlwender '13 combined for 26 yards on consecutive carries to set up a first-and-goal from the Amherst six yardline. Facing third down, Murphy looked to have Hartwell open in the flat, but skipped a pass toward the open receiver forcing the Ephs to settle for a field goal that made it 20-10.

Still trailing at the tailend of the third, Amherst strung together an eight-play, 80-yard drive. Staring at a third-and-9 from the Jeff 21, Lippe launched a 30-yard pass down the middle of the field to O'Malley, who fought off an Eph defender to pick up a big first down.

Lippe then connected with Durham for an 11-yard strike before Wilson rumbled for 23 yards, dragging a Williams player to the 15-yard-line. Three plays later, Lippe capped off the drive by hitting Durham on a slant in the end zone to trim the deficit to 20-17.

With the Ephs going three-and-out on its next possession, Amherst got the ball right back with 13:19 on the clock. On second-and-7, Wilson burst through the hole and into the Williams secondary, reeling off a 26-yard run before fumbling it at the Jeff 41-yardline. Trailing the play, Jack MacLennan '14 pounced on the loose ball to make sure Amherst retained possession.

Forced into a fourth-and-9 just three plays later, the Jeffs looked to have to boot it away, but a roughing the kicker penalty gave the home team new life. On third-and-13 from the Williams 41, Lippe took another deep shot down the middle of the field, this time finding a streaking Ragone, who made a nice leaping catch at the two yardline. From there, Lippe kept it on the option, putting the Jeffs ahead with his second rushing TD of the day, but Jake Schmidt '14 missed the ensuing extra point to keep it 23-20.

Still down three with just 1:32 to go, Williams picked up 26 yards on a pair of Jeff Brewington '14 receptions. After three-straight incompletions, the Ephs saw another ball fall to the turf, but a pass interference penalty gave the visitors one final shot. Regrouping, the Jeff defense stepped up, as Jaymie Spears '16 picked off substitute quarterback Adam Marske '14 on the very next play to seal the victory.

Spears led Amherst with eight tackles, an interception and two pass breakups, while Sam Clark '13 had six stops. Heflin accounted for the Jeffs' other pick, while Dickenson collected six tackles and two forced fumbles. Chris Cameron '13 led Williams with 10 stops, while Antonio Blanco '15 and Emmanuel Whyte '13 each had nine tackles.

Today's game also marked the last for the Class of 2013. In four seasons, Amherst's 14 seniors have compiled a 28-4 overall mark, becoming one of the winningest classes in the program's 135-year history.