WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Washington and Lee football team recorded its second straight shutout with a 22-0 win over Catholic University on Saturday afternoon in Washington, D.C. It was the first time since 1982 that the Generals have posted back-to-back shutouts. That season, they shutout Catholic 41-0 followed by a 6-0 blanking of Georgetown.
The Generals (3-2, 2-0) took a 3-0 lead on a 42-yard field goal by sophomore placekicker Ben Long (Frankford, W.Va./Hargrave Military) with 8:44 remaining in the first quarter. Long then connected from 26 yards out with 12:14 left in the second quarter to give W&L a 6-0 lead which it would take into halftime.
After halftime, the Generals broke the game open by scoring 16 points in the third quarter. Sophomore wide receiver Colton Ward (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Country Day) started the scoring spree on a 19-yard touchdown run with 8:43 left in the quarter. Ward would finish the game with four carries for 35 yards and a touchdown. He also caught a career-high 11 passes for 84 yards.
W&L extended its advantage to 16-0 with 4:35 remaining in the quarter on a 24-yard field goal by Long. Catholic fumbled the ensuing kickoff and the Generals recovered the ball on the Cardinals' 29 yard line. On the very next play, W&L junior running back Michael Lackett (Allenwood, N.J./Wall) hit senior wide receiver John Barnwell (Charlestown, S.C./Porter-Gaud) on a 29-yard strike to give the Generals a 22-0 lead. The two-point conversion failed producing the final score.
The W&L defense recorded five sacks and held the Cardinals to just 116 yards of total offense. The Generals now have 30 sacks on the season and are just five shy of the school record of 35 sacks.
Offensively, W&L was led by junior quarterback Greg Tweardy (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park), who completed 27-of-42 passes for 246 yards. Lackett rushed 17 times for 51 yards and senior wide receiver Taylor Callaham (Atlanta, Ga./McDonough) caught eight balls for 115 yards.
Freshman defensive back Kyle Luby (Dallas, Texas/Highland Park) notched a team-high 11 tackles and junior defensive end Liam Murray (Oneonta, N.Y./Oneonta) had eight tackles.
Catholic (2-3, 1-1) was paced by running back Ed Smith, who rushed for 54 yards on 15 carries. Quarterback Anthony Durham completed 15-of-25 passes for 84 yards and wide receiver Frank Lynch caught six passes for 65 yards. Anthony DelBorrell made 10 tackles and Ryan Parrish chipped in with nine tackles.
Washington and Lee returns to action on Saturday when it hosts Hampden-Sydney. The game is slated to begin at 1:00 pm.
-- GENERALS --
