SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. (Nov. 15) – The Vulcans bolstered its post-season candidacy with a 35-10 victory at Shippensburg after scoring four touchdowns in the second half on Saturday afternoon in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Crossover play.
NOTES
• California finishes the regular season with an 8-3 overall record, marking its third season with at least eight wins in the last five years.
• The Vulcans were slotted fifth in the latest Super Region One rankings and will likely receive an at-large berth to the NCAA Playoffs.
• Cal limited Shippensburg to 227 yards of total offense with the lone touchdown for the Raiders coming in the final minute of play.
• Junior defensive back
Alexie Sangster, Jr. led the team with a career-high 15 tackles (nine solo), including 2.0 sacks and 2.5 TFL.
• Junior linebacker
Samuel Hobbs and senior defensive lineman
Josh Hough both added six stops and 1.5 TFL with Hough also recording 1.0 sack and one fumble recovery.
• Junior
Kendrick Agenor finished with 79 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries.
• Senior quarterback
Roman Purcell totaled 168 passing yards on 18-of-31 attempts with two touchdowns and one interception.
• Junior wide receiver
D'Avay Johnson led the team with 72 receiving yards on five catches, including one touchdown.
• The game served as the final contest for Shippensburg head coach Mark Maciejewski, who announced his retirement this week following 32 years with the Raiders and 15 seasons as head coach.
RECAP
• The Vulcans took a 7-0 lead on their opening drive with a 31-yard touchdown pass from Purcell to senior tight end
Rowen Hershey with 4:44 left in the first quarter.
• Cal blocked a 44-yard field goal early in the second quarter before the teams traded field position for much of the quarter.
• The Raiders converted a 28-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to cut the deficit to a 7-3 mark.
• The Vulcans extended the lead to 14-3 on a 29-yard touchdown pass from Purcell to Johnson on third down with 11:23 left in the third quarter.
• Cal forced a turnover on downs at its own 39-yard line late in the quarter, sparking a nine-play drive that crossed into the fourth quarter and was capped by a four-yard touchdown by Purcell at the 13:22-mark.
• The Vulcans recovered a strip sack three plays later and Agenor scored on a nine-yard run from Agenor with 12:13 left to play, 28-3.
• Cal later recovered a fumble on a punt and Agenor added a 24-yard touchdown run on the first play of the ensuing drive to extend the lead to 35-3 with 8:04 remaining.
NEXT
• The NCAA Selection Show will stream tomorrow, Sunday, Nov. 16, at 6 p.m.
• This season, Super Region One will feature four automatic qualifiers awarded to conference champions and four at-large berths.
• Bentley (NE-10), Johnson C. Smith (CIAA) and Kutztown (PSAC) have already clinched berths to the NCAA Playoffs. The MEC has co-champions with either Charleston OR Frostburg State set to claim the automatic bid.
