ASHLAND, Va. – After rushing for four touchdowns,
Dante Casciola (Charlotte, N.C./Weddington) guided the Yellow Jackets to an impressive 42-14 win over Hampden-Sydney in the 130th edition of "The Game", for their 12th consecutive win in the series. This season, Randolph-Macon has clinched its fourth consecutive ODAC title.
The Basics:
Score: #18 Randolph-Macon 42, Hampden-Sydney 14
Venue: Ashland, Va. // Day Field // Randolph-Macon College
Records: #18 Randolph-Macon (9-1, 8-0 ODAC), Hampden-Sydney (7-3, 5-3 ODAC)
How it Happened:
- Randolph-Macon was ready at the start, as Gracyn Ross (Beaverdam, Va./Patrick Henry) returned the opening kickoff 43 yards to the Hampden-Sydney 48-yard line. Despite the impressive special teams play, the drive was cut short after Landon Farriss (New Hanover, N.C./New Hanover) fumbled on a 14-yard reception, giving H-SC the ball on its own 27.
- Over the course of the next three minutes, the Tigers implemented both rushing and passing sets to get into RMC territory. On fourth down, Jeffery Acheampong (Montgomery, Md./Sherwood) recovered an aborted snap over the head of Carter Sido, giving RMC the ball back with nine minutes remaining in the first.
- In under two minutes, the Yellow Jackets marched down the field and scored, getting out to a 7-0 lead with 6:35 left in the quarter. Casciola rushed for his first touchdown of the afternoon, after a 13-yard grab from Basit Qadri (Ashburn, Va./Rock Ridge) and 21-yard rush from Mitchell Johnson (Powhatan, Va./Powhatan).
- At the start of the second quarter, a sack by Gabe Semidey (Midlothian, Va./Midlothian) and Brady Kinloch (Leesburg, Va./Tuscarora) forced a Tigers punt after a four-and-out that gave RMC the ball with 14:00 left in the quarter. The Yellow Jackets then put on a running clinic, as a 34-yard run from Cameron Chatmon (Willow Springs, N.C./Green Level) and 21-yard run from Johnson set Casciola up for his second rushing touchdown of the afternoon. Trever Luther (Chambersburg, Pa./Chambersburg Senior) gave his team the 14-0 advantage after nailing his second extra point of the game.
- On RMC's next possession with 3:55 remaining in the quarter, Casciola snuck in from the one-yard line for his third rushing touchdown of the half, giving Randolph-Macon a 21-0 lead.
- Sido had a rough start to the second half, as he was first sacked by Tim Semisch (Midlothian, Va./Benedictine) and then picked off by Kindin Richardson (Columbia, Md./Wilde Lake), with Richardson returning the ball 25 yards to the Tigers' 25-yard line.
- The Yellow Jackets wasted no time, as Day Field saw Casciola use his legs for his fourth score of the contest, putting RMC up 28-0 with 12:01 left in the third.
- Hampden-Sydney responded by orchestrating its best drive of the game, in the form of a 19-play, 79-yard drive that resulted in a one-yard rushing touchdown from Terry Hicks, putting H-SC down, 7-28.
- The Lemon and Black's next drive was just one minute and 45 seconds, as Randolph-Macon took a 35-7 lead as a result of a four-yard Chatmon rushing touchdown.
- With 8:03 remaining in the game, Randolph-Macon assembled a 10-play, six-minute drive that culminated with a 13-yard rushing touchdown from Detric Brown (Winchester, Va./Millbrook) to extend the Yellow Jackets' lead to 42-7.
- On the Tigers' last full offensive possession of the game, Jordan Jackson hauled in a 36-yard completion from Sido to reach a final score of 14-42.
Inside the Numbers:
- Randolph-Macon out-rushed Hampden-Sydney 291-107, including 72-to-3 in the first quarter. This helped RMC earn an immense 6.1-to-2.5 advantage in average yards per rush during the contest.
- The Yellow Jackets went a perfect six-for-six on their scoring opportunities in the red zone. RMC only allowed H-SC in the red zone once for the duration of the game.
- Despite Hampden-Sydney running 81 plays compared to 56 from Randolph-Macon, the home team held a 23-21 lead in first downs.
- Casciola's four rushing touchdowns marks a career high.
- Chatmon's 99 yards rushing is the second-highest total in a single game in his career. This is his first-career game with at least 90 rushing yards and a touchdown.
- This was Semisch's first-career game with two sacks. He now has two sacks in his past three games and has a sack in three of his last four games played at home.
For the Record
- Randolph-Macon has now won 12-straight and 14 of the past 15 meetings with Hampden-Sydney.
- After securing its fourth ODAC Championship in a row, Randolph-Macon joins Bridgewater (2001-05) as the only two programs in the conference since 2000 to earn four consecutive titles.
- RMC has also secured first in the ODAC in seven of the conference's last 10 seasons.
- The Yellow Jackets have now recorded nine-or-more wins in each of its past even full seasons.
- This afternoon's victory was the 33rd consecutive conference win for the Lemon and Black.
- After the interception by Richardson, RMC has now tallied at least one interception in all of its 10 games played this season.
- For the first time since the 2023 season, the Yellow Jackets have posted 30-or-more points in six consecutive games.
Up Next
Randolph-Macon won the ODAC's automatic qualifier to the NCAA Championship. The selection show will be streamed on NCAA.com tomorrow, Sunday, November 16, at 5:00 p.m. ET
