LEXINGTON, Va. – Washington and Lee claimed its first Old Dominion Athletic Conference Football Championship since the 1985 season with a 24-6 victory over Emory & Henry on Saturday afternoon at Wilson Field.
The Generals (7-2, 5-1) will receive the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Playoffs and will compete in the post-season for the first time since playing in the 1951 Gator Bowl.
W&L entered the halftime with a 7-0 lead as senior wide receiver Colton Ward (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Country Day) scored on a 13-yard touchdown run with 5:27 left in the second quarter.
The Generals upped their lead to 10-0 on a 20-yard field goal by senior placekicker Ben Long (Frankford, W.Va./Hargrave Military) with 7:21 left in the third quarter, then assumed a 17-0 advantage just 2:26 later as junior linebacker Kyle Harvey (Columbia, S.C./Richland Northeast) picked off a pass by Emory & Henry senior quarterback Todd Woods (Radford, Va./Radford) and ran 47 yards for a touchdown.
W&L forced an Emory & Henry punt on the next possession, but the punt hit a Generals' blocker and was recovered on the W&L 44-yardline. The Wasps then sliced the lead to 17-6 with a 28-yard touchdown pass from Woods to senior wide receiver Brennan Stewart (Shawsville, Va./East Montgomery) with 36 seconds remaining in the third quarter. The PAT was no good.
The Generals added some insurance with 13:27 left in the game as freshman quarterback R.J. Varner (Birmingham, Ala./Spain Park) hooked up with junior wide receiver Jack Martin (Clayton, Mo./Hun School) for a 52-yard touchdown pass for a 24-6 lead.
Sophomore running back Stuart Sitterson (Atlanta, Ga./Westminster) paced the W&L offense with 98 rushing yards on 19 carries, while Martin caught three passes for 59 yards and one touchdown. Varner completed 7-of-12 passes for 78 yards and one touchdown.
Defensively, the Generals held E&H to just 35 rushing yards on 28 carries and intercepted three passes. Junior cornerback Jimmy Gift (Richmond, Va./Collegiate) led the way with eight tackles, while junior cornerback Mark Snoddy (Atlanta, Ga./Westminster) picked off two passes and tied the W&L record for career interceptions (16) held by Dave Waters since the 1951 season. Sophomore defensive lineman Tommy Matteo (Worcester, Pa./Germantown Academy) added seven tackles and 2.5 sacks.
Woods led the Wasps by completing 19-of-37 passes for 209 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. Stewart caught seven passes for 85 yards and one touchdown, while junior running back Matt Gillespie (Newton Falls, Ohio/Newton Falls) rushed 16 times for 30 yards. Sophomore linebacker Evin O'Sullivan (Fredericksburg, Va./Colonial Forge) paced the Wasps' defense with 14 tackles and a fumble recovery.
Washington and Lee returns to action on Saturday as it travels to Cleveland, Ohio to take on Case Western Reserve. Opening kickoff is slated for 1:00 pm.
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