Shepherd University Athletics

10TH-RANKED SHEPHERD GOES TO 10-0 WITH 34-7 WIN OVER WEST LIBERTY

SHEPHERDSTOWN, W. Va. -- Junior quarterback Dan Chlebowski (Greencastle, PA/Greencastle-Antrim HS) completed 15-of-27 passes for 171 yards and three touchdowns to lead 10th-ranked Shepherd University to a 34-7 win over West Liberty in WVIAC football action at Ram Stadium on Saturday.

Shepherd opened the scoring on a 22-yard field goal by junior kicker/punter Ricky Schmitt (Virginia Beach, VA/Salem HS) to take a 3-0 lead with 8:11 left in the first quarter.

The Rams took a 10-0 lead when Chlebowski teamed with sophomore wide receiver Mark Springirth (Germantown, MD/Watkins Mill HS) on a 24-yard scoring strike with 9:40 remaining in the second quarter.

West Liberty cut the lead to 10-7 when quarterback Mike Darrah teamed with wide receiver Renard Stevens on a 13-yard scoring strike with 5:42 left in the second quarter.

Shepherd took a 17-7 advantage into halftime when Chlebowski teamed with redshirt freshman Craig Tremel (Lilly, PA/Penn Cambria HS) on a 30-yard scoring pass with 48 seconds left in the half.

The Rams increased their lead to 24-7 when Chlebowski connected with Springirth on a 22-yard score with 5:33 left in the third quarter.

Sophomore running back Dervon Wallace (Lusby, Md/Calvert HS/WV State), who rushed 29 times for a 159 yards, scored on a 30-yard jaunt with 14:40 left in the fourth quarter to up the Ram lead to 31-7.

The Rams closed out the scoring on a 40-yard field goal by Schmitt with 3:36 left in the contest.

Darrah completed 13-of-34 passes for 155 yards with five interceptions for the Hilltoppers.

Derrick Stickles led the West Liberty ground game with 20 carries for 61 yards.

Shepherd limited West Liberty to 179 yards of total offense. The Hilltoppers were held to 24 rushing yards.

Junior linebacker Bobby Jarvis (Richmond, VA/Hermitage HS) led the Rams defense with eight tackles (seven solo). Ian Whittington had 12 tackles with nine solo stops to lead the Hilltoppers.

Junior free safety Dan Peters (Cresson, PA/Penn Cambria HS) picked off four passes for the Rams and became the new Shepherd single season interception leader with 12 of the year. He eclipses the old mark of 11 set by Everett Yore in 1982.

Shepherd moves to 10-0 on the year, 7-0 in WVIAC action, while West Liberty falls to 6-4, 4-3. The Rams return to action next Saturday when they host West Virginia State in the regular season finale in a 1:00 p.m. contest.

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