Williams 35, Bates 14
at Williamstown, Mass.

BOBCATS HANG TOUGH WITH WILLIAMS, 35-14

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. -- Facing potentially their toughest opponent of the season in their first road game, the Bates College football team (0-3) played their best contest of the year despite losing to the Williams College Ephs (3-0), 35-14.

After a scoreless first quarter, Bates and Williams were still scoreless after the first four possessions of the second period before the Ephs went 46 yards in nine plays as fullback Tyler Shea scored on Williams' fourth attempt from the two-yard line. Williams missed the extra point to take a 6-0 lead with 6:22 left in the half. The Ephs extended the lead later in the second with their longest drive of the afternoon, going 76 yards in 1:53, scoring on a 17-yard touchdown pass from Joe Reardon to Ryan Friend with 1:22 left in the half as Williams took a 13-7 lead into the break.

Bates started the second half with their best sustained drive of the season, marching 75 yards in nine plays and just under two and a half minutes. Junior tailback Sean Atkins (New York, N.Y.) had his longest run of the day for 27 yards in the drive, while also adding the one-yard touchdown to cut the lead to 13-7. The Bobcats also got a big pass from junior QB Kane Jankoski (Spencer, Mass.) to first-year tight-end Adam Ranks (Old Town, Maine) for 31 yards.

Unfortunately for the Bobcats, Williams answered on their very next drive, culminating a 70-yard drive with a 26-yard scoring pass from Reardon to wideout Scott Farley anda two-point conversion. Williams looked to extend its 21-7 lead on its next possession, but junior defensive back Pat Boyaggi (Cleveland, Ohio) blocked Farley's field goal attempt. The Ephs took advantage of good field position to score another TD in the third quarter on a QB draw by Reardon with 25 seconds left in the period. After the Ephs took a 35-7 lead early in the fourth, Bates put together another long drive, converting three straight third-down situations as rookie RB Mike Agosto (New York, N.Y.) scored his second career touchdown from a yard out, cutting the lead to the final 35-14.

Jankoski led the way for the Bobcats, completing 15 of 26 passes for 208 yards, both career-high performances. Atkins rushed for 60 yards on 21 carries, plus the touchdown, while Ranks had a fine game in his first career start, catching six passes for 83 yards. Four of his catches were for first downs, while the other two were for nine yards. The Bobcats also did not turn the ball over for the first time this season.

Full Game Stats