LEXINGTON, Va. – The Washington and Lee football team used a 97-yard drive late in the fourth quarter to move to 6-0 with a 21-17 win over Randolph-Macon on Saturday afternoon at Day Field. 

The Generals (6-0, 3-0) were pinned back on their 3-yardline following a punt that was downed just shy of the goal line.  W&L moved the 97 yards on 11 plays, taking the 21-17 lead on a 26-yard touchdown run by junior running back Connor Chess (Fairfax, Va. / Flint Hill) with 1:35 left in the game.  W&L completed a 19-yard pass from junior quarterback Charlie Nelson (Redding, Conn. / St. Luke's) to junior tight end Jack Taylor (Broad Run, Va. / Battlefield) on the first play and Chess finished off the epic drive 10 plays later.

W&L recovered from a 10-0 halftime deficit as it managed just 117 yards of total offense in the first half.  Randolph-Macon (1-5, 0-3) used a 31-yard field goal from junior Seth Yurgel and a 5-yard touchdown run from senior quarterback Bubby Morgan for the halftime lead.

W&L forced a three-and-out on the first possession of the second half and marched 66 yards on eight plays, with sophomore running back McKenna Johnston (Jupiter, Fla. / Benjamin School) taking an option pitch and scoring from three yards out to make it 10-7 with 10:13 left in the third quarter.

Each team had one failed drive before W&L sophomore safety Michael Shields (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Country Day) intercepted a pass at the Generals' 33-yardline and returned it 27 yards to the Macon 40-yardline.  Junior running back Marshall Hollerith (Richmond, Va. / St. Christopher's) ripped off a 39-yard run on the next play and Hollerith finished off the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run on the next play to give W&L a 14-10 lead with 51 seconds left in the third quarter.

The Yellow Jackets punched right back, completing a 46-yard pass from first-year quarterback Billy Sheehan to first-year wide receiver Christian Redman on the first play of their next series.  R-MC scored five plays later when Sheehan found junior tight end Steven Quinn with a 4-yard touchdown pass for a 17-14 lead at the 13:05 mark.

Both teams punted on their next series' and the Generals took control of the contest with their game-winning drive in the final minutes.

W&L finished with 383 yards of total offense, including 347 yards on the ground.  Hollerith finished with 121 yards and one touchdown on 14 carries to lead the W&L offense.  Chess tallied 105 yards and one score on 15 carries, while Nelson rushed 23 times for 80 yards.  He also completed 3-of-6 passes for 36 yards.  Sophomore linebacker Max Garrett (Fairfield, Conn. / Choate Rosemary Hall) totaled a team-best seven tackles, while first-year safety Thomas Freeland (Franklin, Tenn. / Ensworth) posted five tackles and a pair of interceptions.

Randolph-Macon had 281 yards of total offense.  Redman caught seven passes for 100 yards to pace the Yellow Jackets.  Senior running back John Byrd tallied 83 yards on 16 carries, while Sheehan went 7-of-14 passing for 72 yards and one touchdown with one interception.  Morgan was 7-of-11 for 65 yards but was intercepted twice.  Senior safety Eric Long logged a game-high 14 tackles.

Washington and Lee returns to action on Saturday when it hosts Bridgewater for a 1:00 pm contest.

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