NEWPORT NEWS, VA – The seventh-ranked Johns Hopkins football team went on the road on Saturday for its second consecutive game against a team that qualified for the 2023 NCAA Playoffs.
While the two games couldn't have played out any differently, the final result was the same as the Blue Jays spoiled Family Weekend at Christopher Newport on Saturday evening with a gutty 14-3 victory before a crowd of 4,752 at TowneBank Stadium.
The defenses controlled the game from the start as neither offense would score in the opening 15 minutes and sustained drives were hard to come by for either team.
The Blue Jays (2-0) pieced together their best drive of the opening half late in the first quarter. Taking over from their own 45 after a short CNU punt, the Blue Jays converted a third down chance in their own territory and then a fourth-and-one from the Captain 31 before senior Bay Harvey hit classmate PJ Scales in stride across the middle and Scales raced into the end zone 54 seconds into the second quarter.
The Captains (1-1) returned the kickoff after the Scales touchdown to their own 46-yard line and moved into Blue Jay territory before the drive stalled at the Hopkins' 24-yard line. There, Maxx Lawton was good with a 40-yard field goal attempt to trim the deficit to 7-3 with just over 10 minutes remaining
Neither team seriously threatened in the final 10 minutes of the second quarter to account for a 7-3 halftime score that would hold until deep into the third quarter.
Nursing the four-point lead and with the Captains pinned deep after a 45-yard punt from sophomore Chase Alley, the Blue Jays got the game-turning play from their defense that they needed as junior Jack Schondelmayer intercepted Tahir Johnson at the CNU 29-yard line and returned it to the 22. Two plays later, Harvey hit Scales down the seam and he weaved through traffic inside the five-yard line before finding the end zone to give the Blue Jays a 14-3 lead.
After the Blue Jays forced another punt, the offense took over and pieced together a stunning 16-play, 59-yard drive that ate 11:35 off the clock. While the drive stalled inside the CNU 18-yard line, there was just 2:02 on the clock when the Captains took over. CNU managed to move the ball out to their own 45, but were pushed back to the 32 after a big loss and the clock ticked away before they could run a final play on fourth-and-23.
Inside the Box Score – Johns Hopkins
• The Blue Jay defense held CNU to 144 yards of total offense – this is the first time JHU has held an opponent under 150 yards since Ocoter 22, 2022 (Gettysburg-139).
• Cole Peters led the Blue Jay defense with a career-high 12 tackles, including one for a loss.
• Schondelmayer now has two interceptions on the year and four in his last four games dating back to last season. He added four tackles to go along with his interception.
• Scales had three receptions for 47 yards and the two touchdowns. The two-touchdown game is the first of his career.
• Harvey was 12-of-20 for 120 yards and the two scores.
Inside the Box Score – Christopher Newport
• The Captains ran just 52 plays and managed just the 144 yards of total offense. In the second half, they ran 25 plays for just 62 yards.
• Three CNU quarterbacks combined to go 9-of-22 for for 70 yards with one interception..
• Gunner White had a game-high 55 rushing yards on 10 carries and added four receptions for 28 yards to account for 83 of CNU's 144 yards on the night.
• Masi Buning had a team-high 12 tackles, including 2.5 for losses and two sacks, while Noah Martin added 10 tackles, on pass breakup and recovered a Blue Jay fumble.
Notes of Interest
• The win is the eighth straight for Johns Hopkins on the road; this is tied for the fifth longest road winning streak in program history.
• Dating back to 2010, the Blue Jays are 28-3 in road games in the month of September.
• JHU is now 9-1 in its last 10 games in the state of Virginia.
Johns Hopkins will return to action on Saturday, September 21 when the Blue Jays welcome Salisbury to Homewood Field for the Blue Jays' home opener (2 pm).
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