UR?s football team was unable to parlay the dominance from last week?s blowout win into a victory in game two.
The Yellowjackets suffered a devastating loss at home at the hands of Johns Hopkins University by a score of 28-6.
The Blue Jays were led by the spectacular running of tailback Scott Martorana, who had 134 yards and three touchdowns.
UR seemed befuddled right from the start and was forced to take a timeout even before the first play from scrimmage.
Last week, UR was able to surprise St. John Fisher College with its new shotgun-style offense, but Johns Hopkins was ready for it.
Play by play
After five quick plays, the Blue Jays found themselves in scoring position.
However, the UR defense, which allowed only six points against Fisher, was able to come through with a big play to prevent Hopkins? first touchdown.
Sophomore cornerback Kassim Howell broke early on a telegraphed pass by Johns Hopkins QB Rob Heleniak, intercepting the ball at the two-yard line.
Junior tailback John Breedy later busted through a gaping hole on third down from the six for a mammoth 75-yard run, streaking all the way to Johns Hopkins? 19-yard-line.
Sophomore kicker Chris Johnston then sent home a 31-yard field goal to give UR an early 3-0 lead.
Martorana scored his first TD of the afternoon on a 42-yard sweep play around the right end. Johns Hopkins then tried for a sneaky two-point-conversion passing play, but it failed. However, the referee called pass interference on Howell, giving the Blue Jays a second chance ? a chance they used to tack on an easy extra point kick, taking a 7-3 advantage.
Senior QB Jeff Piscitelli came out firing on the ensuing drive. Three consecutive completions to junior tight end Joe Spilman for 27 total yards brought the ball into Blue Jay territory.
Spilman had a big day for the squad, piling up 54 yards on eight catches.
A third-down reception by Patrick Roman and a 16-yard completion to Justin Davis left UR on the 12-yard line.
Piscitelli?s nine-yard keeper up the right sideline, coupled with a late-hit penalty, gave UR a first and-goal from the one-yard line.
Two unsuccessful QB sneaks and an incomplete pass forced head coach Mark Kreydt to send out the field goal unit on fourth down. Johnston converted his 19-yard kick to bring the Yel-lowjackets to within one point of their opponents.
Unfortunately, that was the closest they would come for the rest of the game.
Johns Hopkins came out strong in the second quarter, marching down the field from their own 34. Martorana scored a TD on yet another right sweep, this time from merely six yards out, giving his team a 14-6 lead.
After another Martorana?s third touchdown, fullback Steve Stache scored from the one-yard line. The touchdown, was set up by a 45-yard screen pass from Heleniak to Martorana, gave Johns Hopkins a huge 22-point cushion.
UR?s special teams later blocked a field goal to prevent Hopkins from extending its lead.
The second half was a defensive lockdown. Neither team?s offense could get it going after halftime.
Neither squad added to their point total during the remainder of the contest.
Johns Hopkins? first two possessions started from the UR 32 and the UR 29, respectively. Despite the excellent field position, UR was able to stand tall and deny any major Johns Hopkins advances.
Lost chances
The Yellowjackets did have a few opportunities to cut into the Blue Jays lead, but UR was unable to cash in on any of these chances. A 27-yard chip shot by Johnston was partially blocked. Howell fumbled a punt at midfield that would?ve given the Jackets great field position.
And when UR did start with good field position, they were unable to capitalize on it.
Starting from the Johns Hopkins 28 late in the fourth quarter, Piscitelli led the team to the 7-yard line with a crucial fourth down situation.
Kreydt opted to go for the end
zone, and on a play action rollout pass, Piscitelli?s throw was batted away by Johns Hopkins defender Matt Campbell.
Campbell intercepted Piscitelli on the next UR drive, cementing the Blue Jays? 28-6 victory. When all was said and done, Johns Hopkins just outplayed UR.
?I have to give a lot of credit to Johns Hopkins,? Kreydt said. ?As good as we executed last week, they prevented us from executing very well at all.?
The Yellowjackets hope to rebound next week against St. Lawrence University Saturday at 1 p.m. at Fauver Stadium.
Pisco can be reached at jpisco@campustimes.org.
