Moravian Closes Out 2022 Season & Centennial Conference Membership with Senior Day Versus Muhlenberg on November 12

BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- The Moravian University football team hosts rival Muhlenberg College in the Greyhounds' final Centennial Conference contest on Saturday, November 12. Kickoff is slated for 12:00 p.m. at Rocco Calvo Field in Bethlehem as the Hounds celebrate Senior Day. The Greyhounds have been an associate member of the Centennial Conference since 2007 but will joining the Landmark Conference in 2023 when the conference adds football as a sport with the addition of Lycoming College and Wilkes University. 

THE COACHES: Jeff Pukszyn (Moravian '98) is entering his 12th season as Moravian's head coach after ten years as an assistant coach with the program. Pukszyn joined the Moravian staff as a part-time coach in 1997 after a three-year playing career that saw him named to the All-Middle Atlantic Conference First Team in 1994 and 1996. He was inducted into Moravian's Hall of Fame in 2019. He was also a two-time captain. Pukszyn became part of the coaching staff full-time in 1999 as defensive coordinator and added the titles of assistant head coach in 2001 and special teams coordinator in 2007. In 2015, Pukszyn led the Greyhounds to an 8-3 record and a berth in the inaugural Centennial-MAC Bowl Series while being named both the Centennial Conference and American Football Coaches Association Division III Region 2 Coach of the Year. He has been a part of 284 games for Moravian since 1994 with a 133-150-1 record.
     Muhlenberg coach Nate Milne (Hobart '03) is in his fifth year as head coach with of 40-9 mark. 

THE SERIES: Saturday's meeting will be the 70th between the schools with Muhlenberg leading 34-33-2. The Mules posted a 55-0 victory in Allentown last fall for their tenth straight win in the series, and the Mules longest winning streak between the schools. The Greyhounds' last win in the series a 14-13 triumph in 2010 in Bethlehem.

GREYHOUNDS IN THE CENTENNIAL CONFERENCE: Moravian joined the Centennial Conference as an associate member in the sport of football in 2007. The Greyhounds were selected seventh in the Centennial Conference preseason coaches poll. Muhlenberg was second in the poll with three first-place votes. Moravian is playing its final season in the Centennial Conference in 2022 with the Landmark Conference scheduled to begin football in the fall of 2023 as Lycoming College and Wilkes University become full Landmark Conference members. 

WEEKLY GAME CAPTAINS: The Hounds will be selecting captains on a weekly basis in 2022 with the senior class of defensive lineman Bryan Bendig, tight end Chris Carpini, defensive lineman Javi Espinal-Katz, defensive lineman Jack Gawlik, running back Angelo Macera, quarterback Nick Reardon, kicker/punter Trevor Yacuboski and long snapper Samuel Yadush serving as captains for this weekend's game versus Muhlenberg College.

THE QUARTERBACKS: Sophomore Jared Jenkins started the season and completed 41-of-73 passes for 592 yards to go with five touchdown and three interceptions before an injury. He also carried the ball 42 times for 36 yards and a score before an injury. Sophomore Carter Hallgren was 47-for-90 for 372 yards with three touchdowns and five interceptions after making starts against No. 9 Johns Hopkins University, Dickinson College and Juniata College to garner his first career victory before an injury. Junior quarterback/wide receiver Brad Bryan has started the last three weeks and is 28-for-58 for 184 yards with an interception while freshman Sean Murphy is 7-for-13 for 70 yards to go with 13 rushing yards on five carries. Senior Nick Reardon is 9-for-11 for 125 yards and two touchdowns while sophomore wide receiver Jordan Lewis is 1-for-1 with a 17-yard touchdown pass at Ursinus.

THE BACKFIELD: Junior Nate Boyle leads the Moravian rushing attack with 792 yards and seven touchdowns on 204 carries this season while senior Angelo Macera has contributed 141 yards on 41 rushing attempts. Freshman Camron Tinajero has run the ball six times for 80 yards while junior quarterback/wide receiver Brad Bryan has added 38 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.

THE OFFENSIVE LINE: Moravian has one returner with game experience on the offensive line in junior Javal Reyes at right guard. The Greyhounds add four other new starters to the starting offensive line sophomore Reins Leedy at left tackle, sophomore Riley Craft at left guard, sophomore Brandon Guffy at center and freshman Tyler Herring at right tackle. The Greyhounds' front five has an average size of 6-2, 287. Sophomore Paul DeFalco has also seen time as a reserve at several positions on the offensive line, and he has started at four games as well while sophomore Jai Fentress and freshman Danny Smith have seen reserve action this season, and Smith has recorded one tackle.

THE WIDE RECEIVERS: The Greyhounds have had 14 different players catch a pass this year led by junior wide receiver Tim Garlick, who has 38 catches for 360 yards and three touchdowns. Junior quarterback/wide receiver Brad Bryan has 24 catches for 327 yards with a long of 77 yards and two touchdowns in his first year at the position while sophomore wide receiver Jordan Lewis has 19 receptions for 218 yards and two scores. Junior running back Nate Boyle has caught 11 passes for 150 yards and a touchdown while sophomore wide receiver Bryan Monge has added 11 receptions for 85 yards. Sophomore wide receiver Brandon has nine receptions for 49 yards while freshman wide receiver Landon Rutley has caught five passes for 49 yards and a touchdown. Sophomore wide receiver Will Castel has four catches for 11 yards while sophomore wide receiver Nick Weston has three receptions for 77 yards and a score. Senior tight end Chris Carpini has three catches for 15 yards and a touchdown while senior running back Angelo Macera has three receptions for seven yards. Junior tight end Sean Foley has one catch for four yards while sophomore wide receiver James Bensen has one reception for five yards and freshman wide receiver Jaylen Quick has one catch for three yards. Garlick has seven yards rushing this fall as well.

DEFENSIVE FRONT: Senior Jack Gawlik leads the Moravian defensive front with 33 tackles with seven tackles for loss, four sacks and a pass break-up after missing the season opener while freshman Drew Bailey has contributed 33 tackles with one and a half sacks and three tackles for loss. Senior Javi Espinal-Katz has added 32 tackles, five tackles for loss and three and a half a sacks while sophomore Jeremy McGuigan has 22 stops with three tackles for loss, three sacks, two quarterback hurries, a fumble recovery, a forced fumble and a pass break-up. Sophomore Prince Sokpo has added 12 tackles, a half tackle for loss and a pass break-up while freshman EJ Harvey has 10 tackles. Senior Bryan Bendig has added four tackles while sophomore Mason Zimmerman has two stops and freshman Drew Brizan has added one tackle.

THE LINEBACKER CORPS: Junior Nick Levinski leads the linebackers and the entire Moravian defense with 64 tackles, four tackles for loss, a sack, a forced fumble, a pass break-up and a quarterback hurry while freshman Clay Basile has 46 tackles, three tackles for loss and a pass break-up. Sophomore Jeremiah Espinosa has 36 tackles with two and a half tackles for loss and a pass break-up while junior Colin Conway has added 34 stops with three tackles for loss, a sack, five pass break-ups and a forced fumble. Junior Chris Ortalano has contributed 33 tackles with a half a tackle for loss while freshman Jashon Teller has 14 stops and one and a half a tackles for loss. Freshman Joshua Ruela has 10 tackles while junior Anthony Mosley has made seven stops. Freshman James Wells has seven tackles while freshmen Damere Rooker and Stephen Guy both have added two tackles in their first year with the Hounds.

THE DEFENSIVE BACKFIELD: Graduate student Romello Walters leads the defensive backs with 56 tackles including a half a tackle for loss to go along with seven pass break-ups, a forced fumble and two fumble recoveries. Sophomore Chad Newhard has 41 tackles with two tackles for loss and a pass break-up while sophomore Isaiah Johnson has 34 stops, one tackle for loss, four passes defended and an interception. Graduate student Jalen Richardson has 29 tackles after missing the first two games of the year while junior Zach Scillia has 28 tackles, two tackles for loss, one and a half sacks, a forced fumble and three interceptions including a 47-yard return versus Gettysburg College this season. Graduate student Carrington Smith has made 11 stops after missing the first two contests while junior Matt Blazofsky has added eight tackles. Freshman Matt Capobianco has eight tackles with an interception, two passes defended and a half a tackle for loss while freshman Joe DeRossi has seven tackles and blocked a punt versus Gettysburg and freshman Tom Post has one tackle in his debut season.

KICKING GAME: Sophomore Sam Bingaman is 5-for-5 on field goal attempts with a long of 41 yards at TCNJ on his first attempt as a Greyhound, and he is also 17-for-18 on extra points. Bingaman has punted 40 times with an average of 40.8 yards to go with a long and school record of 75 yards, six inside the 20-yard line, eight fair catches and three touchbacks, and he has kicked off 14 times for an average of 57.2 yards with three touchbacks. Senior Trevor Yacuboski has kicked off 20 times for an average of 49.0 yards with one touchback, and he has punted 13 times with an average of 41.4 yards, a long of 68 yards, one touchback, two fair caught, one blocked and five inside the 20-yard line. Yacuboski is 1-for-1 on field goals with a one of 30 yards, and he is 0-1 on extra-points. Sophomore quarterback Jared Jenkins has punted once for 30 yards while sophomore quarterback Carter Hallgren has punted once for 45 yards.

FRED MITCHELL OUTSTANDING PLACE-KICKING WATCH LIST: Moravian freshman kicker Sam Bingaman was one of 29 place-kickers across from non-BCS schools the nation that was recognized by The Fred Mitchell Outstanding Place-Kicking Award for his performance during the opening half of the 2022 season.

SPECIAL TEAMS: Graduate student defensive back Jalen Richardson has 11 kickoff returns for 194 yards while freshman running back Camron Tinajero has eight kickoff returns for 131 yards. Sophomore wide receiver Will Castel has returned six kickoffs for 71 yards while freshman wide receiver Tre Crenshaw has returned four kickoffs for 54 yards. Junior quarterback/wide receiver Brad Bryan has two kickoff returns for 35 yards while graduate student defensive back Romello Walters both have a pair of kickoff returns for 42 yards. Castel has 11 punt returns for 47 yards while sophomore defensive back Joe DeRossi was credited with a punt return for 13 yards on his blocked punt versus Gettysburg and junior linebacker Chris Ortalano has a two-yard return after recovering the blocked punt. Sophomore wide receiver Nick Weston has made three stops while senior running back Angelo Macera and freshman running back Tyler Rohn have added a pair of tackles on special teams. Bryan, junior wide receiver Tim Garlick and sophomore quarterback Jared Jenkins each have one tackle.

MILESTONE WATCH: The Greyhounds have two players closing in on milestones for his careers. Junior running back Nate Boyle became the 26th player in school history to reach 1,000 career rushing yards when he reached the milestone versus Juniata College, and Boyle has 1,397 yards on 334 career carries to sit in 16th all-time. Boyle needs 103 yards to become the 15th Greyhound to reach 1,500 career yards. Senior kicker Trevor Yacuboski is tied for six with 11 career field goals made, and he is 13th in total kicking points with 56. Sophomore punter/kicker Sam Bingaman set two school records at Franklin & Marshall College with a new long punt of 75 yards and a total of 448 punting yards in a single game.

SCOUTING MUHLENBERG COLLEGE: The Mules enter the game at 5-4 overall and 5-3 in Centennial Conference action after falling 28-24 to nationally-ranked Susquehanna University last Saturday. Muhlenberg is being led on the field by sophomore quarterback Joe Repetti, who is 172-for-274 for 2,185 yards to go with 27 touchdowns and nine interceptions. His top targets have been senior wide receiver Michael Feaster, who has 45 catches for 701 yards and five touchdowns, senior tight end James Nye, who has 27 receptions for 436 yards and eight scored, junior wide receiver Pelton Esannason, who has caught 19 passes for 253 yards and a touchdown, and senior wide receiver Thomas Jenkins, who has 19 receptions for 186 yards and three scores. Repetti also leads the Mules with 382 rushing yards and six touchdowns on 79 attempts while senior running back Ethan Brader has 302 yards and four scores on 82 carries. Junior wide receiver Christopher Ardito, who has 15 catches for 192 yards and two touchdowns, has returned 12 kickoffs for 238 yards and three punts for eight yards while sophomore wide receiver Jaiden Cabrera has 16 punt returns for 136 yards. Senior punter Kevin Olifiers is averaging 42.3 yards per punt on 28 kicks with a long of 64 yards and six inside the 20-yard line while Repetti has punted three times for an average of 48.7 yards and two inside the 20[yard line. Junior Nick Stannard is 32-for-36 on extra-points and 3-for-6 on field goal attempts with a long of 30 yards while senior Alex Garrido is 5-for-5 on extra-points. Senior linebacker Owen Daddona leads the Muhlenberg defense with 70 tackles including six tackles for loss, three and a half sacks, two passes defended and an interception. Senior defensive back John Lohrer has contributed 62 tackles with two for loss, six passes defended and four interceptions while senior defensive back Dominick Visintin has 44 stops with four and a half for loss, one sack, four passes defended and a pair of interceptions. Junior defensive lineman Keshon Davila has contributed 38 tackles with five for loss and three sacks while senior linebacker Tyler Ekstrom and senior defensive back Kyle Dormer have both made 36 stops with Dormer adding two tackles for loss, a sack, a pass break-up and a forced fumble while Ekstrom has one pass break-up. Senior defensive back Alex Batistia has added six passes defended with one interception, a blocked kick and a fumble return of 16 yards to go along with 29 tackles.

THE LAST TIME THEY MET: In Allentown last fall, Moravian saw its 2021 season come to a close with a 55-0 loss to No. 15 Muhlenberg College on a rainy Saturday afternoon at Scotty Wood Stadium. The Greyhounds received the opening kickoff but would end up punting. It took Moravian four plays to get the ball back as defensive back Chad Newhard intercepted a pass by Mike Hnatkowsky to set the Blue and Grey up near midfield. Quarterback Carter Hallgren, who was making his first career start for the Hounds, was intercepted on a fourth-and-one play. The Mules turned the miscue into the first of eight touchdowns in the game as Muhlenberg led 7-0 with 7:37 to go in the first quarter. Muhlenberg added another touchdown on the first play of the second quarter, and the Mules scored twice more before the intermission to head to the locker room with a 27-0 lead. Muhlenberg began the second half with a long drive and extended the advantage to 34-0. After being limited to just 27 total yards in the first half, 22 on the ground, and no first downs, Moravian put together a 14-play, 74-yard drive on its opening possession of the second half that moved into the red zone and down to the one-yard line before running back Nate Boyle was stopped on fourth down to give the ball back to the Mules. Muhlenberg turned the defensive stand into another touchdown, and Muhlenberg added one more score before the game ended. After the game, Greyhound defensive back Jackson Buskirk was selected as Moravian's Sean Keville Most Valuable Player Award winner after making 13 tackles with nine solo stops. It is the third straight game in the series that Buskirk has been the Moravian MVP. This is the first year the award has been named in memory of Sean Keville '95, who passed away from COVID-19 in April 2020, and is a member of the Moravian and Middle Atlantic Conference Halls of Fame. Hnatkowsky was honored as Muhlenberg's Bianco Award MVP in the contest while the Mules were awarded the Sodexo Cup. Moravian finished the game with 117 yards including 94 on the ground. Running back Carrington Smith had 83 yards on 20 carries while Boyle had 13 yards on nine attempts. Hallgren was 5-for-12 for 23 yards with an interception in his first career start while quarterback Brad Bryan did not attempt a pass but had three yards on one rushing attempt. Wide receiver Trevor Cunningham caught three passes for 20 yards while wide receiver Tim Garlick had one reception for two yards and Smith caught one pass for a yard. Buskirk's 13 tackles gave him 298 tackles in his career including 191 solo stops to finish his career fifth in school history. Newhard, linebacker Romello Walters and linebacker Jeremiah Espinosa all had six tackles, and Walters also had two kickoff returns for 57 yards. Defensive back Renard Nicholson contributed five tackles while defensive back Justin McRae had four stops. Linebacker Francis Lagreca had three tackles with one for loss and a pass break-up while defensive back Connor Lyon and linebacker Nicholas Azpeitia each had a tackle for loss and defensive lineman Javi Espinal-Katz was credited with a quarterback hurry. Wide receiver Nick Weston returned two kickoffs for 29 yards while wide receiver Nick Basenese had a pair of kickoff returns for 25 yards and linebacker Chris Ortalano returned two kickoffs for 20 yards.

OVERTIME 'HOUNDS: Moravian has played a total of 12 overtime games since the NCAA instituted the rule for the 1996 season and is 9-3 all-time in the extra-session including a pair of overtimes wins in 2021. Five of those 12 overtime games have been against Juniata College with the Greyhounds going 4-1 in those games. Moravian's contest in Huntingdon in 2008 marked the first time in the Greyhounds' have needed more than one overtime session in a game. The 2021 season marked the fourth year that Moravian has played at least two overtimes games in one season, the other years were 2008 when the Hounds played two overtime contests, 1999 when the Greyhounds played three overtime games and 1997 when Moravian played two overtime contests.

THE CENTENNIAL CONFERENCE STATISTICAL RANKINGS: The Greyhounds are ninth in the Centennial Conference in total offense at 266.4 yards per game, and Moravian is eighth in scoring at 17.2 points per contest. The Hounds are seventh in the conference in time of possession, holding the ball for an average of 29:36 per game. Defensively, Moravian is eighth in the conference in yards per game, allowing 390.4, and the Blue and Grey are seventh in points allowed at 31.8 per outing. Individually, junior running back Nate Boyle is second in the Centennial Conference at 88.0 rushing yards per contest, and he leads the conference in rushing attempts with 204 while junior wide receiver Tim Garlick is sixth in receptions per contest at 4.2. Sophomore punter/kicker Sam Bingaman is tied for seventh in the Centennial Conference in kick scoring with 32 points while being tied for sixth with five made field goals and first in punting with an average of 40.8 yards per punt. Junior linebacker Nick Levinski is fourth in the conference with 8.0 tackles per game while sophomore defensive back Chad Newhard is 13th at 6.8 tackles per contest. Graduate student defensive back Romello Walters is tied for first with seven pass break-ups while junior linebacker Colin Conway are tied for seventh in the conference with five pass break-ups. Junior defensive back Zach Scillia is tied for fourth with three of interceptions while senior defensive lineman Jack Gawlik is tied for tenth with seven tackles for loss this season, and he is tied for sixth with four sacks this fall. 

NCAA STATISTICAL RANKINGS: Sophomore kicker/punter Sam Bingaman is 14th in punting at an average of 40.8 yards per punt, and he is tied for 96th in field goals per game at 0.62. Junior running back Nate Boyle is 53rd in rushing yards with 792 and 56th in rushing yards per game with an average of 88.0 yards per outing. Junior defensive back Zach Scillia is tied for 93rd with 0.3 interceptions per game while sophomore wide receiver Will Castel in tied for 72nd in punt returns at 4.3 yards per return.

BALANCED & EXPERIENCED 'HOUNDS: Of the 84 players on the Moravian roster, 34 are freshmen, 24 are sophomores and 15 are juniors. There are eight seniors and three fifth-year players on this season's squad, and the Greyhounds return 38 letterwinners and five starters from 2021.