Box Score Oct. 14, 2017 Final Stats
WATERBURY, Conn. â€" The Navy sprint football team posted a 39-0 victory over Post University on the road on Saturday at LaMoy Field in Waterbury, Conn. The Mids shutout the Eagles for the third consecutive game in the series and have not allowed Post to score since the first 16 seconds of the 2014 game â€" 239 minutes and 44 seconds of action, spanning nearly 16 quarters.
"We are extremely happy with the way the team came back from last week's road loss to Army," said Major Jeff Polson, USMC. "This week with multiple starters out on both sides of the ball, players stepped in and made big plays. As an offense, we were able to move the ball through the air well but we continue to struggle finishing drives in the red zone. Defensively, the team played a great game while allowing 54 yards on 56 plays. Braydan Chmiel passed for over 300 yards. Nick Haslam contributed with the linebacker corps with six of their 24 tackles."
Defensively, the Midshipmen kept the Eagles off of the scoreboard. In addition, the Mids held the Eagles to 54 yards of total offense, including 90 yards passing and -36 yards on the ground. Navy tallied 8.0 tackles for loss, including 6.0 sacks. The defense forced three fumbles, while recovering a pair of loose balls.
Sheppard Wilson (Charlotte, N.C.), Nick Haslam (Roanoke, Texas), and Dean Rye (Fairfax, Va.) paced the defense with six tackles apiece. Luke Coughlin (Islip, N.Y.) and Caiden Groff (Bennington, Neb.) each recorded a team high 2.0 tackles for loss, while each adding a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery. Wilson also added a forced fumble, while Rye was credited with a pass breakup.
Offensively, The Mids registered 384 yards of total offense. The passing game accounted for 301 yards, while the team rushed for 83 yards on the ground. Braydan Chmiel (Warrenton, Mo.) eared his first start of the season and finished the game 21-for-37 for 301 yards and two touchdowns. In addition, the plebe rushed for 40 yards on 13 carries with a TD.
Austin Rogers (Cottonwood, Ariz.) and J.T. Thompson (Stratham, N.H.) paced the receivers. Rogers finished with a team-high 93 yards receiving, while Thompson was second with 88. Dane Livengood (Treynor, Iowa) and Sam Shaunak (Collierville, Tenn.) each caught touchdown passes on the day. Livengood added a TD rush in the game as well.
Brennen Means (Highland, Calif.) led the team with 52 rushing yards on eight carries, while adding a touchdown. Brian McLaughlin (Melrose, Mass.) chipped in 20 yards on the ground.
After being held scoreless in the first quarter, Navy scored 19 in the second quarter to break the game open. The Mids began the scoring with a touchdown from Chmiel to Shaunak. The 24-yard strike capped a two-play drive to start the second quarter and put the Midshipmen in front 7-0 with 13:15 to play in the half.
Navy added to its advantage with a 25-yard field goal by Jared Swenson (Seymour, Wis.) with 4:40 to play in the second quarter. The Mids burned 4:11 off the clock on an 11-play drive covering 33 yards to set up the field goal.
On the following Post possession, the Mids defense caused an Eagles fumble in the end zone. The home team was able to fall on the ball, resulting in a safety.
Up 12-0 in the second quarter, Chmiel finished off a nine-play 43-yard drive with a three-yard pass to Livengood with 17 ticks on the clock to extend the advantage to 19-0 just before halftime.
In the third quarter, Livengood found the end zone for a second time, rushing for a nine-yard score. The TD run ended a nine-play, 64-yard drive to put the Midshipmen ahead 25-0.
Chmiel crossed the plane of the goal line with a 14-yard rush with 14:05 remaining in the fourth quarter. The quarterback called his own number and scampered in for his second rushing touchdown of the season. The TD run capped an eight-play 79-yard drive, extending the Navy advantage to 32-0.
Following a Post fumble, Navy pieced together a 10-play drive that chewed up 4:11 off the clock. The drive covered 64 yards and saw Means tote the ball six times, including a 24-yard carry to move the Mids into Eagles territory. Means capped off the drive with an eight-yard jaunt into the end zone to push the Navy lead to 39-0 with 4:09 to play.
"The team is focused and ready to get to work on preparation for Cornell next week at home," Polson added. "We hope to see our fans out next week as we begin our three game run at home."
Navy returns to action on Friday, Oct. 20 as the Midshipmen host Cornell at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. The game is slated to begin at 11:30 a.m.
