EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. – Despite hoping for a day to remember on Saturday, the Shepherd University football team was given a first half to forget.
East Stroudsburg scored all 24 points of the first half, all while the Rams were trying to establish the offense, en route to handing the Rams their second straight loss with a 31-7 decision in a PSAC East game.
Shepherd (5-3, 2-3) fumbled the ball twice – losing one – and added an interception and a missed field goal while gaining just 80 yards in the first 30 minutes.
It allowed the Warriors, ranked No. 22 in Division II, to start and score on two drives starting deep in Shepherd territory to grab the 24-0 halftime lead.
East Stroudsburg stopped Shepherd on three plays on the opening possession and returned a punt 43 yards to the Rams 25.
Shepherd was able to halt the Warriors, who settled for a 21-yard field goal from Ty Quintois for a 3-0 lead at the 11:30 mark of the first quarter.
After a second short possession by the Rams, the Warriors made it 10-0, completing a 62-yard drive with a 1-yard run by Cade Sawyer with 5:42 remaining in the quarter.
The Warriors added a pair of second-quarter scores to take a 24-0 advantage into halftime. Ajani Walker scored on a two-yard run with 1:55 left, and quarterback Matt Machalik fired a 23-yard scoring toss to Sawyer with 1:30 remaining.
East Stroudsburg recovered a fumble to set up Walker’s score and intercepted Shepherd quarterback Michael Hardyway to get to Machalik’s touchdown with 1:30 remaining before intermission.
Shepherd missed a 39-yard field goal attempt as time expired to take the 24-point deficit to the locker room.
The Rams got on the scoreboard in the second half with Hardyway finding Carrington Nickens-Yzer on a 56-yard touchdown pass with 3:52 remaining in the third quarter to move Shepherd to within 24-7.
But East Stroudsburg maintained the lead and tacked on a 1-yard touchdown by Machalik with 12:48 remaining to close the scoring.
Shepherd finished with 169 yards of total offense while East Stroudsburg totaled 369 yards.
Hardyway completed 12-of-23 passes for 158 yards for the Rams. Machalik connected on 11-of-19 passes for 125 yards for the Warriors.
Nickens-Yzer led Shepherd with three receptions for 70 yards and a touchdown.
The Rams travel to Shippensburg on Saturday for a 1 p.m. game.
