No. 24 Trojans fall to Robert Morris, 33-26
Greg Gorham
Box Score Box Score | Season Stats
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. -- A pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns kept the Trojans in the game, but the comeback attempt fell short, as No. 24 Trinity International fell on the road to Robert Morris, 33-26, Saturday night at Morris Field. Sophomore running back Chris Elliott rushed for 104 yards and a pair of TDs to lead the Trojan offense, but turnovers stopped TIU on what looked to be promising drives throughout the night.
The Trojans (3-1) fell behind in the opening quarter, as the offense picked up one first down over the team's first two drives. Robert Morris responded with three straight touchdowns to open play, to take a 21-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. RMU running back LaMont Wims and quarterback Matt Westerkamp each scored on short runs, while Westerkamp also picked up one TD in the air, connecting with Sean Zingshiem for a 1-yard score.
Trinity International got the ball rolling at the start of the second quarter, when Chris Elliott capped off a methodical 13-play, 75-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run. After the TIU defense held the Eagles to a 42-yard field goal, making it a 24-7 game, the Trojans suffered their first turnover of the night with an interception on the drive's second play. RMU took over on their own 42-yard line, but the defense held strong and were able to hold off the Eagles until the half ended.
In the longest drive of the night, Trinity used 7:32 of the third quarter to pull even closer to Robert Morris, with a 75-yard drive that was highlighted by Elliott's 8-yard touchdown run, cutting the Eagles lead to 24-14. Again, the Trojan defense kept the team in the game, and when Robert Morris made the agressive move to go for it on a 4th-and-4 play from the TIU 37-yard line, Stephen Lockhart was there to break up the pass and force the turnover on downs after just four plays.
The Trojans marched down the field again, but were stopped in their tracks after a fumble on the Robert Morris 17-yard line was recovered by the Eagles, killing the drive. RMU was unable to convert the takeaway into points, but did pin the Trojans down to their own one-yard line as time expired in the third quarter.
The turnover bug bit again, as a TIU pass was intercepted on the second play of the fourth quarter, giving the Eagles possession inside the Trojan 5-yard line. Westerkamp connected with Zingshiem again for the 6-yard touchdown pass, but the extra-point snap was fumbled, making it a 30-14 game in favor of Robert Morris.
Luciani Lubin stepped up and brought his team back, finding a seam on the following kickoff and going 94 yards for the touchdown. Going for two and attempting to make it a one-possession game, the conversion attempt failed, but TIU had inched closer, cutting the lead to 33-20 with 13:49 to play.
A 66-yard pass to open up the next drive put the Eagles in solid field position, but TIU held their ground and forced RMU to a 34-yard field goal with 11:47 on the clock, opening the lead back to 13 points at 33-20.
Poised to cut the lead again and with plenty of time remaining, the Trojans drove 62 yards, all the way to the RMU 3-yard line, when an interception in the end zone swung the momentum back in favor of Robert Morris. The defense was able to get a 3-and-out, after which Anderson connected with Elliott for an 8-yard touchdown pass with 3:03 to play. Although the offensive covered 57 yards in just over a minute, they would not get another chance at the ball, as RMU was able to pick up a pair of first downs on the ground to run out the clock.
Anderson finished the game with 158 yards passing, going 19-for-30, with a touchdown and three interceptions. Wideout Patrick Alexander led the recieving corps with 76 yards off of eight catches. Christian Robinson caught nine passes for 61 yards.
Defensively, Sione Maka and Brad Badali led the unit with nine tackles each. Maka and Vincent Aguilar each picked up a sack as well.
The Trojans return to Frazier Field this Saturday, October 5, to celebrate homecoming weekend as they host Olivet Nazarene, scheduled for a 12:00 p.m. kickoff.
