ANNVILLE, PA (October 14, 2023) -- Brennan Robinson came up big for the King's College football team, scoring three times, to help lead the Monarchs to a 35-21 win on the road at Lebanon Valley in an important Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) contest. With the victory in Annville, the Monarchs improve to 5-1 overall and 4-1 in the MAC standings, while the Flying Dutchmen drop their first MAC game and stand at 4-2 with a 4-1 conference mark.
King's (5-1, 4-1 MAC) set the tone from the start on a rainy Saturday afternoon on Lebanon Valley's (4-2, 4-1 MAC) homecoming weekend. The Monarchs marched down the field and used 12 plays and 75 yards to put together a scoring drive on the opening possession and go ahead, 6-0, with 8:54 to go in the quarter as Russell Minor-Shaw connected with Brennan Robinson from seven yards out. The defense delivered as well in their first outing of the game, forcing a fumble on third and long that was recovered by Dallas Solomon.
An empty King's possession on the next drive gave Lebanon Valley the ball back on a lengthy 8:54 drive to start the second and find the end zone to put the hosts ahead, 7-6, with 10:56 left in the half.
The conditions in the game contributed to back-to-back miscues from each side that resulted in King's taking over on the Flying Dutchmen four-yard line with 6:51 to play. It took just 46 seconds for the Monarchs to punch the ball into the end zone as Minor-Shaw ran it in for a one-yard touchdown to push the Monarch lead to 13-7 with 5:59 remaining in the first half.
The weather reared its head again as both teams lost the ball on their next possessions. On the following Monarch drive, a big 46-yard run from Jayon Hailey set up an 18-yard run from Robinson as the King's lead grew to 19-7 with 2:11 on the clock. Amir Gibson silenced a driving Lebanon Valley offense that strung together 13 plays for 53 yards with a shot at the end zone before the half, but Gibson intercepted the pass in the end zone to preserve the 19-7 King's lead at the break.
King's started the third just like the first, using a solid defensive stop on the opening drive to then run five plays across 2:19 of game clock, moving the ball 64 yards capped off by a 33-yard run from Robinson plus a successful two-point conversion from Robinson as King's held a daunting 27-7 lead over Lebanon Valley with 11:12 left in the quarter.
After punting the ball away, the Flying Dutchmen defense put the hosts on the scoreboard in the second half on a fumble recovery returned for the score as the scoreboard read 27-14 in favor of the Monarchs. Another Monarch mishap allowed Lebanon Valley to tack on another score to close within 27-21, but an interception from Joe Carchio helped squash another scoring drive from the hosts in the period as King's maintained the 27-21 lead into the final quarter of play.
With 8:09 to go, King's regained possession and found their stride offensively, connecting for 42 yards on six plays over 3:58 of action that featured a Minor-Shaw pass up the middle to Ryan McCombs for a 21-yard touchdown reception. Minor-Shaw found Mike DiGregorio in the end zone on the two-point conversion for a 35-21 lead with 4:05 remaining.
The Flying Dutchmen seemed to have a strong drive going, but this time it would be Alex Tristan to intercept the Lebanon Valley pass at the Monarchs 40-yard line to put the ball back in the King's hands with 1:55 left in the game.
King's ran 32 seconds off the clock as the hosts made one final push to extend this game, but on fourth and short in Lebanon Valley territory, Teone Sherrod broke up a pass that forced a turnover on downs and secured the 35-21 MAC victory for King's at Lebanon Valley on Saturday afternoon.
Minor-Shaw totaled 103 passing yards, completing 10 passes on 15 attempts with two touchdowns while also rushing for 67 yards and a score on 22 carries. Hailey finished as the Monarchs leading rusher with 89 yards on 12 attempts with three catches for 29 yards, while Robinson posted 70 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries on the ground with two catches for five yards and a score. Additionally, McCombs totaled 34 yards on a pair of receptions to go along with his touchdown.
Defensively, King's was led again by Carchio with eight tackles and an interception, while Sherrod, Jake Ruppert, and Jared Reto all posted seven tackles. Solomon had a strong day up front, recording six tackles and 1.0 tackle for a loss of 16 yards, while Tristan recorded a team-high two break ups.
On special teams, DiGregorio returned two kickoffs for 30 yards, while Tyler Carey returned one for 22 yards.
Lebanon Valley's offense was led by Braden Bohannon who rushed for 123 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 26 carries while also completing eight passes on 24 attempts for 60 yards with three interceptions. Alex Vassallo was the leading receiver with 36 yards on four catches. The defense saw a game-high nine tackles, 1.0 tackle for a loss of two yards, and a fumble recovery from Jacob Horton.
As a team, the Monarchs out gained the Flying Dutchmen 325-258 for the game, including 222-188 on the ground and 103-70 in the air. King's was efficient in the red zone, scoring on three of five opportunities while also holding the edge in the turnover margin, securing five to just three lost.
The Monarchs will return to McCarthy Stadium for their final home game in October, hosting conference newcomer Eastern University next Saturday. Kickoff is set for 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 21 in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
Robinson's Three Scores Propel Football to Important Conference Win
/seasons/2023/boxscores/20231014_6fiy.xml
2023
King's
35
Lebanon Valley
21
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| King's (5-1) | 6 | 13 | 8 | 8 | 35 |
| Lebanon Valley (4-2) | 0 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 21 |
Oct 14, 2023
--MONARCHS--