Apr 23, 2021 3 min read

NEW WILMINGTON – This game was going to be the measuring stick for Justin Heacock.

Well if this was the measuring stick, then it’s going to be a long summer for the Washington & Jefferson junior quarterback.

His mistakes led to three Titans touchdowns in a 27-20 loss to Westminster in the championship game of the Presidents’ Athletic Conference Friday night.

This was the first championship in Scott Benzel’s seven-year stint as Westminster’s head coach.

“They cause turnovers; that’s what they do,” W&J head coach Mike Sirianni said of Westminster’s defense. “We didn’t make a turnover all season. We pride ourselves on not making turnovers.”

Heacock completed 24 of 44 passes for 198 yards and a touchdown. What stands out is the three interceptions. Each one led to a Westminster touchdown.

W&J was also hurt by the loss of Joey Koroly, who was not able to play. Justin Huss replaced him and did a good job, rushing for 107 yards on 19 carries.

Andrew Wolf, far and away the best receiver on W&J’s roster, had 11 receptions for just 26 yards.

“Obviously, this is a team sport but we played well defensively,” said Benzel. “There’s a lot of history at the school. We had to earn this. It was a long seven years. We’ve had a lot of good football teams that haven’t won a championship.”

Westminster had 158 total yards and 12 penalties for 122 yards.

Just five minutes into the game, Heacock was hit and fumbled. The ball was recovered by linebacker Ian Barr and returned for a touchdown.

Another fumble set up a punt from the W&J 2 that Westminster returned to the W&J 5. Two plays later, it was 14-0.

In the fourth quarter, Heacock was picked off and that led to another Westminster touchdown.

“We didn’t give them anything,” said Sirianni. “They played as hard as they can. We played as hard as we can. They just take. They take.”

Westminster won most of the first quarter and Washington & Jefferson the second. Both teams scored twice but Westminster led 14-10. The Titans had 29 total yards at halftime and still led the game.

With 10:45 left in the first quarter, Heacock was sacked, fumbled and outside linebacker Ian Barr picked it up and raced 43 yards into the end zone for a touchdown.

Heacock fumbled the ball again, this time with W&J backed up to the five, and the Presidents recovered at the 2-yard line.

But it was fourth down and Jacob’s Sarver’s punt was returned to the W&J 5. Two plays later, Frank Antuono ran it in from the wildcat formation to make it 14-0.

That score seemed to spark W&J. The Presidents drove the ball to the Westminster 21-yard line. From there, Heacock hit Payton Skalos with a 21-yard touchdowb that cut Westminster’s lead in half, 14-7, with 18 seconds left in the first quarter.

With 9:45 left before half, W&J drove again b ut was stopped at the four. Sean Disbrow hit an ugly 22-yard field goal to cut the Titans lead to 14-10.

W&J dominated the first half statistics, amassing 134 total yards to Westminster’s 29. The Titans were penalized 65 yards, including a 35-yard penalty for holding and unsportsmanlike conduct.

Huss rushed for 25 yards on six carries. Heacock completed 15 of 24 passes for 121 yards.