ALFRED, N.Y. – Castleton scored the final 17 points of the game and received some strong defensive play to overcome a halftime deficit and earn a 36-23 victory over Alfred St. on Saturday during homecoming for the Pioneers.
The Spartans trailed 16-13 at the break and then 23-19 midway through the third quarter beforeDerek McAdoo picked off a pass and took it 33 yards to the house for a 26-23 lead that the team wouldn't relinquish.
Castleton was outgained 460-378 but got stops went it was necessary and forced three turnovers to improve to 2-1 for the first time in program history. Alfred St. dropped to 0-4 on the season with the loss.
Senior Kevin Alberque was all over the field for the Spartans, scoring two touchdowns and finishing with 316 all-purpose yards while touching the ball just 15 times. The wide receiver had 93 receiving yards, 77 kick return yards, 73 punt return yards and 73 rushing yards for the second most single-game all-purpose yards in program history.
Tyler Higley was effective under center, as he went 12-for-30 for 204 yards and tossed a career-high three touchdowns and no interceptions. Senior Tyler Combs was his primary receiver with three catches for 43 yards and a touchdown. Alberque led the team with 73 yards rushing on eight attempts while Matt Rafus carried the ball 11 times for 37 yards.
Rasheed Williams was a force on the ground for the Pioneers, rushing for 260 yards and two touchdowns on 26 attempts. Quarterback Jake Bahantka was 17 of 34 for 212 yards and one touchdown but threw a one costly interception. Erik Simmons caught a team-high six passes for 96 yards.
McAdoo had his best game as a Spartan, with four tackles, two pass breakups and the second interception return for a touchdown in program history. Eric Mimnaugh finished with a team-high nine tackles, including one for a loss while Jay Morgan had six tackles with 2.5 for a loss.
The Spartans took the opening kickoff and received four strong rushes from Matt Rafus and an Alfred St. penalty to advance the ball to the Pioneer 38-yard line. Castleton then successfully executed a reverse as Alberque took the ball and went around the outside and past the defense for 38 yards to the endzone and the 6-0 lead.
Both defenses held strong until early in the second quarter when Bahantka found Tavon Moore for a 44-yard touchdown pass to knot the game 6-6. Cam McHale then blocked the extra point to keep the score tied.
Both teams played the field position game before Bobby Lineberger pinned Alfred St. back on its own one-yard line. However, Williams took the first play of the drive and went 99 yards for the score with 3:08 left in the half.
Castleton countered just 16 seconds later as Higley connected with Alberque for a 63-yard scoring strike on the first play of its next possession to tie the game 13-13.
The Pioneers was poised to add to their lead in the final minute, with a first and goal on the three-yard line, but Castleton held strong and forced them to a field goal to go into the break 16-13.
In the third quarter Higley found Makai Hawkins for a 21-yard touchdown pass to put the Spartans back in front 19-13. Lineberger's extra point was blocked to keep it a six-point game.
The Pioneers responded on their next drive as Williams rushed in from 25 yards out with 4:52 in the third quarter and the extra point pushed their lead to 23-19.
Castleton was forced into a three-and-out and Alfred St. took over the ball on its own 20-yard line. On third and five, McAdoo picked off Bahantka and returned it for the touchdown and the 26-23 lead with 1:47 left in the third quarter.
Lineberger pushed the Spartan lead to 29-23 on a 30-yard field goal with 13:20 remaining in the contest. On the ensuing kickoff, the Spartans forced a fumble, which was recovered by Joe DeAlesandro at the 30-yard line.
Six plays later Higley tossed a 13-yard score to Combs to extend the Spartan advantage to 36-23 with 11:17 left. Castleton held the Pioneers without a point the rest of the way to secure the win.
The Spartans are on the road again next week as they open up conference play with Becker at 2 pm.