HAMILTON, N.Y. (10/25/08) – Freshman running back Nate Eachus (Drums. PA) carried 34 times for 171 yards and two second half touchdowns as Colgate (7-2 overall, 3-0 Patriot League) rallied for a 21-13 win over #21 ranked Lafayette (6-2, 2-1) Saturday at Andy Kerr Stadium.

 

The Colgate victory leaves the Raiders in a first place tie with Holy Cross in the Patriot League standings as they extended their winning streak to six straight games.  Lafayette saw the nation’s longest road winning streak stopped at six games.

 

Colgate, which was held to 46 yards in the first half, came out in the second half hitting on all cylinders.  The Raiders finished with 288 yards of total offense, while the defense limited the Leopards to 109 yards in the second half for a game total of 281.

 

Lafayette dominated the entire first half using excellent field position to slow down the Raiders.  On Lafayette’s second possession of the game, the Leopards took over at their own 45-yard line after a 42-yard punt by Jacob Stein (St. Petersburg, FL).

 

Lafayette used only five plays to cover 55 yards for the touchdown, with Joe Russo catching a four-yard TD pass from Rob Curley on third-and-goal with 7:38 remaining.

 

Earlier in the second quarter, Lafayette moved to the Colgate 35-yard line where the Leopards faced fourth-and-two.  Electing to go for a first down, Curley completed a 10-yard pass to Shaun Adair to keep the drive alive.  However, on the next play, Colgate’s Paul Mancuso (Somers, NY) sacked Curley for a nine-yard loss, and the defense eventually forced a 47-yard field goal by Davis Rodriguez giving Lafayette a 10-0 lead.

 

The turning point in the game came on Lafayette’s first possession of the second half.  The Leopards marched to the Colgate five-yard line, where they had first-and-goal.  Colgate linebacker Greg Hadley (Fayetteville, NY) stripped the ball from Lafayette’s Jerome Rudolph, and sophomore linebacker Zach Smith Thorofare, NJ) recovered at the eight-yard line.

 

Colgate immediately put together a nine-play, 92-yard drive for its first touchdown of the game.  Eachus, who carried six times for 44 yards in the drive, capped the series with a seven-yard run with 5:40 remaining in the third quarter.

 

On Lafayette’s next possession, the Leopards scored on a 35-yard field goal by Rodriquez for a 13-7 lead with 1:46 left in the quarter.  Lafayette went 57 yards in eight plays for the three points.

 

A poor kickoff by the Leopards gave Colgate the ball at its own 46-yard line.  On three plays, Colgate moved to the visitors’ 46-yard line where they faced fourth-and-two.  Quarterback Greg Sullivan (Monroe, NY) kept the ball for the Raiders and raced to the Lafayette 38-yard line where he fumbled.  Wide receiver Pat Simonds (Sidney, NY) recovered for the Raiders at the 35-yard line for the first down.  On the next play, which was the first play of the fourth quarter, Sullivan redeemed himself with a 35-yard run up the middle for the go-ahead touchdown.

 

Colgate iced the contest with a 16-play, 76-yard drive midway through the final quarter with Eachus scoring his eighth touchdown of the season for an eight-point lead with 4:02 remaining.  After forcing Lafayette to punt, the Raiders managed to run out the clock for the victory.

 

GAME NOTES: Colgate’s leading rusher Jordan Scott (Hyattsville, MD) carried twice in the second quarter for his only action … Simonds, who had one catch for 11 yards, moved into 11^th place in career receiving yardage with 1,461 yards … Colgate has defeated Lafayette 12 out of 13 times under coach Dick Biddle … Sullivan finished with 10 carries for 61 yards and one touchdown, and was 5-for-14 passing for 59 yards … Hadley had a big game for the Raiders with 10 tackles including two TFL’s and one fumble forced … Colgate had four quarterback sacks with defensive back David Morgan (Davie, FL) picking up his fourth of the season.