LEXINGTON, Va. -- Sophomore placekicker Luke Southam (Miami, Fla./Miami Country Day) booted a 24-yard field goal with :21 remaining to lift Guilford to a 22-20 win over Washington and Lee in ODAC football action on Saturday afternoon in Lexington, Va.
W&L junior tailback Marc Watson (Marietta, Ga./Walton) scored on a 19-yard run with 4:11 remaining in the fourth quarter to give the Generals (0-2, 0-1) a 20-19 lead. W&L's attempt for a two-point conversion failed. Guilford then produced an 11-play, 67-yard drive to set up the game-winning field goal.
Guilford opened the scoring with 10:08 remaining in the opening quarter as freshman quarterback David Hessler (Rockville, Md./Walter Johnson) scored on a two-yard plunge to take a 6-0 lead. The Quakers' (2-0, 1-0) attempt at a two-point conversion then failed. With 1:07 remaining in the opening quarter, Hessler scored on another two-yard scamper to give Guilford a 12-0 lead. Another attempt for a two-point conversion failed and the two teams went scoreless for the remainder of the half as the Quakers held a 12-0 advantage at the break.
In the second half, W&L began a comeback as freshman tight end Davis White (Birmingham, Ala./Episcopal) hauled in a 23-yard scoring strike from senior quarterback Christian Batcheller (Stuart, Va./Patrick County) to bring the Generals within 12-7 with 8:05 remaining in the third quarter.
Following another Guilford touchdown, this time on a 1-yard run by sophomore fullback Jeff Faulkner (Cocoa Beach, Fla./Cocoa Beach), the Generals retaliated with a 27-yard scoring strike from Batcheller to Watson to make the score 19-14 in favor of Guilford. The score would remain 19-14 until Watson's tally that gave the Generals the lead.
For the game, Watson rushed 26 times for 114 yards and one touchdown and caught three passes for 24 yards and another touchdown. He also amassed 64 yards on kickoff returns for 202 all-purpose yards. Batcheller completed nine-of-20 attempts for 129 yards and two touchdowns. Junior linebacker Jayson Lipsey (Longwood, Fla./Lake Brantley) led the Generals' defense with 14 tackles and a fumble recovery.
Guilford was led offensively by junior tailback Marques Williams (Riviera Beach, Fla./Suncoast), who rushed for a team-high 112 yards on 26 carries. Hessler completed 17-of-22 attempts for 226 yards through the air.
W&L will return to action on Saturday, September 25, when it hosts Centre College in a 1:00 pm contest.
--GENERALS--
