BALDWIN CITY — In what lived up to the title of ‘Clash of the Week’, the William Penn football team took down No. 16 Baker 24-13 in a Heart of America Athletic Conference North-South crossover game Saturday.
The Statesmen (3-0), who are 3-0 for the first time since 2012, outgained the Wildcats (0-2) 330-202, including 205 coming on the ground. It marks WPU’s first win in the series since September 21, 2019, snapping a three-game losing streak to BU.
William Penn started the game with a touchdown drive that took the squad 84 yards in only five plays. Quarterback Sterling Ramsey II (Sr., Broken Arrow, Okla., Business Management) was back in action for the navy and gold and found Branden Powell (So., Waco, Texas, Kinesiology) for three receptions on the opening drive before Destynd Loring (Sr., Charleston S.C., Sports Management) opened the scoring on a nine-yard touchdown run.
The drive was the start of a solid outing for Ramsey, who completed 12 of 19 passes for 125 yards.
The Statesmen then forced a three-and-out. Their ensuing drive, which featured four penalties between the two squads, eventually concluded with an unsuccessful 37-yard field goal attempt from Aiden Gibbons (Fr., Apollo Beach, Fla., Sports Management) that hit the right up-right.
It was not the cleanest of battles with the Statesmen being flagged 11 times (100 yards), while the Wildcats had 13 infractions for 118 yards.
Both teams were stifled on offense through the rest of the first quarter, but the Wildcats figured things out in the second, putting together a touchdown drive to tie the game at 7-7.
The next time the Statesmen had the ball, Loring took on a lion’s share of the efforts as he toted the ball six times and also had three catches. The drive unfortunately stalled out in the red zone, resulting in a made 24-yard field goal by Gibbons that put William Penn back ahead 10-7 with 2:30 left in the half.
The score would stay the same entering intermission. Baker then received the ball to start the second half and produced a game-tying field goal to knot the matchup at 10-10 midway through the third stanza.
The Statesmen fortunately responded by recording a touchdown drive, sparked by a Loring 31-yard run. The senior would finish off the possession with a two-yard run as WPU entered the final quarter with a 17-10 edge.
Loring was a true workhorse for William Penn with 27 rushes for 199 yards and three touchdowns. He also accounted for three receptions and 21 receiving yards.
The Wildcats were able to narrow the gap to 17-13 early in the fourth with a 12-play drive that ended in a field goal from 42 yards out, but they would come no closer.
Both teams traded punts before William Penn leaned on Loring one final time. The senior carried the ball 10 times on the game-clinching touchdown drive, capped by a 12-yard scamper that gave the navy and gold their first double-digit lead of the afternoon at 24-13 with just 1:54 left in regulation.
The visiting defense then put a bow on the victory with one final stop in the waning seconds.
While Loring was in control of the ground attack, Powell led the William Penn receiving corps with four catches for 57 yards.
Defensively, Brian Weatherspoon (Jr., West Memphis, Ark., Business Management) guided the Statesmen with nine total tackles (one for loss), while Kameron Cummings (So., Houston, Texas, Business Management) was right behind him with eight stops. Lloydarius Garner (Jr., Houston, Texas, Sports Management) managed the lone WPU sack as well.
The turnover-free contest featured just one fumble, which was forced by Sherman Johnson (So., Tampa, Fla., Sports Management) but recovered by Baker.
“I’m so proud of our coaches and players.” Head Coach Marc Benavidez said. “I ask a lot from our staff each week, and they continue to rise to the challenge. Our players trusted the game plan, believed in each other, and executed when it mattered most. Starting 3-0 for the first time in 13 years is a testament to the hard work and focus of everyone in this program. I’m so proud of the young men that these seniors have grown into. We said we needed ‘laser-like’ focus, and our players have done an amazing job. We’ve got a lot of challenging opponents ahead, and I’m excited to see what we can do!”
