TROY, N.Y. -- Nick Borkowski returned an interception for 75 yards for a touchdown, while Andrew Franks put Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) on top for good with a 25-yard field goal with seven minutes remaining to lead the Engineers to a 31-28 win over Union in the 65th Dutchman Shoes Trophy Game. RPI finishes the regular season with a 6-5 overall record, and a 4-3 mark in Liberty League play, while Union finishes at 2-8, with a 2-5 conference slate.
After a scoreless first quarter, Union jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the second, on a 10-play, 65-yard drive that started with 2:30 left in the first. Darnel Thomas capped the drive with a two-yard touchdown run with 13:41 left in the first half. A David Pope kick put the Dutchmen on top, 7-0. Union doubled its score later in the quarter, as Connor Eck threw a nine-yard touchdown pass to Jake Fass, with 7:59 left to play.
RPI scored on the following drive, as senior Reggie Colas reached the end zone on a 10-yard run. During the four-play, 71-yard drive, Mike Tivinis put the Engineers in scoring position with a 52-yard run, accounting for over half of his 89 yards on the day.
Rensselaer tied the game at 14-all on Union's ensuing drive, as Borkowski pulled down an interception on the RPI 25 and returned it 75 yards in the opposite direction. The Engineers forced a four-and-out on the next Dutchmen possession, and took the lead for the first time with just 30 seconds left to play in the first half. Quarterback Tommy Morgan passed for 36 yards to Logan Gaddar, capping a 10-play, 68-yard drive, and gave Renssealer a 21-14 halftime lead.
Union returned from halftime and put up two scores in the third quarter to take a 28-21 advantage. The Dutchmen tied the game with 7:44 left in the third as Thomas ran in from four yards out to tie the game. After forcing and recovering a fumble on RPI's next possession, Union took a 28-21 lead. On fourth-and-19 at the RPI 34, Dante Cioffi hit Josh Callahan in the endzone to put the Dutchmen up by seven with 3:44 left.
The Engineers fought back, and tied the game up for the third time with just under nine minutes to play in the fourth quarter. Morgan kept the ball for an eight-yard run, and an Franks point-after tied the game at 28-28. RPI called an on-side kick on the ensuing kickoff, and the Engineers' Casey McHughrecovered the ball on the Union 38. Rensselaer got into scoring position and Franks nailed a 25-yard field goal to put the Engineers up by three with seven minutes to play.
Union took over on its own 46, and drove down to the RPI 32, but could not convert on a fourth-down pass, allowing the Engineers to take over and run out the clock.
Morgan threw for 120 yards on 9-of-17 passes. Matt Lane led the receiving corps with 48 yards on four receptions. Nick Schlatz ran 14 times for 77 yards, as the Engineers put up 255 rushing yards to Union's 165. Colas had a long kick return of 61 yards. Borkowski and Connor Young each finished with 11 total tackles for the Engineers, while Andre Lussier recorded the lone sack on a Union quarterback.
Cioffi led Union with 136 yards of passing, as the Dutchmen put up 193 yards through the air. Callahan finished with a team-high 87 yards receiving, while Thomas put up a game-best 143 rushing yards on the day. Jake LaRovera led the Union defense with nine total tackles, while Tim Lucey recorded a sack.
Rensselaer Retains Dutchman Shoes Trophy, 31-28
/seasons/2014/boxscores/20141115_tjtl.xml
2014
Union
28
RPI
31
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Union (2-8) | 0 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 28 |
| RPI (6-4) | 0 | 21 | 0 | 10 | 31 |
Nov 15, 2014