UTICA, NY - The Utica College football team will play a rare late season non-conference game on Saturday, November 9th as it treks to Schenectady, NY to face off against No. 14 Union College. Kickoff at Union's Frank Bailey Field is slated for 1 p.m.

Follow Along: Live video of Saturday's game is available from https://unionathletics.com/sports/2018/8/23/football-video.aspx, with longtime Union football radio voice Andrew Santillo on the call. Live stats will be provided at https://unionathletics.com/sidearmstats/football/summary?_ga=2.45162791.2043112623.1573149915-57288882.1572979150. 

Last Time Out: Utica snapped a two game slide with a win over a tough Alfred University team by a 19-10 score at Alfred University's Yunevich Stadium. The win was Utica's fourth all-time over the Saxons, and the program's first at Yunevich Stadium after several tries over the years. A stern defensive effort, ball control, and the kicking efforts of Maki Medici (Watervliet, NY/Shaker) were the keys to victory for the Pioneers as they snagged their first road win of the season. The Pioneers pitched a second half shutout after being tied 10-10 at halftime as they pulled away to victory. The Utica defense had their best yardage and scoring defense performance of the year as they capped Alfred to just 252 total yards of offense and ten points. They held Empire 8 leading rusher Aaron Griffin to just 83 yards rushing and one touchdown, the only touchdown Alfred scored all day. Alfred was also limited to just two third down conversions, and the Pioneers won the time of possession battle handily.  Kwasi Addo (Menands, NY/Shaker) had a team-leading nine tackles, while Jimmie Warren (Suffern, NY/Suffern) had six tackles, two tackles for loss, and a sack. Amari Abraham (Holbrook, NY/Sachem East) broke up two passes. On offense, Ryan VanGalen (Clifton Park, NY/Shenedehowa) made his third career start and completed 15 of 21 passes for 120 yards and a touchdown in an efficient outing. VanGalen's first career start also came at Alfred back when the Utica signal caller was suiting up for Cortland. John James O'Connor (Auburn, NY/Weedsport) caught Utica's lone touchdown of the day. Peyton Miller (Chemung, NY/Waverly) and Keegan Wright (Cicero, NY/Cicero North Syracuse) had 38 and 37 receiving yards, respectively. Brad Dougherty (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) rushed for 82 yards. Maki Medici (Watervliet, NY/Shaker) helped Utica pull away in the second half with a 4-for-4 performance on field goals that included a career-long 48 yard kick.

Stringing Them Together: Utica has consecutive wins over Alfred University for the first time after Saturday's victory.

What's On The Line: The Pioneers need to win both of their remaining games to assure a winning regular season, and two wins would also greatly enhance the team's chances at a bowl game selection.

Another Test: Union will be the fifth opponent Utica has played that has been ranked or receiving votes in the D3Football.com Top 25 this year.

The Series: Utica is 4-0 all-time against Union on the gridiron. The teams played every year from 2011 to 2014 with the Pioneers winning by scores of 28-27, 45-17, 25-16, and 23-16. The team Utica beat in 2011 went on to be the co-champions of the Liberty League. That 2011 meeting was also the first game played on the current turf surface at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium, with the original turf being replaced prior to that season. Utica's largest margin of victory sits at 28 points. Blaise Faggiano and current Union head coach Jeff Behrman have yet to oppose one another as head coaches. All four meetings in the all-time series against Union happened when John Audino was Union's head coach. 

The Most Recent Meeting Against Union: Utica prevailed by a 23-16 score against Union on September 13th, 2014 on a rain soaked Frank Bailey Field. The Pioneers rallied out of a 16-0 hole in the second half with 23 unanswered points to take home the win. A fumble return touchdown in the fourth quarter made the difference in a non-conference road win for Utica. Jonathan Cappotelli led the Utica defense with 17 tackles on the day. Jesse Baldassare rushed for 85 yards, and Anthony Acevedo finished the day with 96 receiving yards.

A Look At The Numbers: Utica is fifth in the conference in scoring offense at 28.6 points per game, and sixth in scoring defense at 30.1 points allowed per game. They are also sixth in total offense and defense this season.

Controlling The Line Of Scrimmage: Utica has had the better of the battle in both pass rushing and pass protection this season. The Pioneers are third in the conference in sacks with 21, just two off the pace set by Alfred. They are second in sacks allowed, as Utica signal callers have been dropped just seven times.

The Awards Keep Rolling In: Junior kicking specialist Maki Medici (Watervliet, NY/Shaker) continues to impress as he picked up a pair of prestigious awards for his performance against Alfred on Saturday. Medici has been named the Empire 8 Special Teams Player of the Week, and was additionally selected to the D3Football.com Team of the Week earlier this week. Just a handful of players nationally get selected to the Team of the Week each week, and Medici's award was Utica's first of the season. The Team of the Week selection was Utica's first since November of 2016, when defensive lineman Nick Bruzzese was selected for his performance in a win over Hartwick College. Medici earns the awards after comprising the entirety of the second half scoring to help Utica put away Alfred in a 19-10 win. He went 4-for-4 on field goals with a career-long 48-yard field goal in the second half. With the Pioneers down 10-7 late in the second quarter, Medici hit a 34 yard field goal through the uprights as time expired to tie the game heading into halftime. With the defense shutting the Saxons out in the second half, Medici drilled additional field goals of 21, 30, and 48 yards to lift Utica to the win. Medici's 48 yard field goal was the second longest in program history.

Medici on The National Scene: Medici leads Division III with an average of 1.75 field goals made per game, and he is fourth in field goal percentage. His field goal percentage of 93.3 percent has been compiled with fourteen field goals made on fifteen attempts. He has the highest make percentage in Division III of anyone with a missed field goal on their record this season. Just three players in Division III remain perfect on field goals, and none of those players leading Medici in field goal percentage have attempted more than ten field goals. He has attempted the fourth most in Division III. He is tied for fourteenth in all of college football in field goal percentage, and all but four players ahead of him are in the Football Bowl Subdivision comprising many of the major college programs nationally. He is also eighteenth in all of college football in field goals per game.

One of the Best Keeps Getting Better: The Utica punt coverage unit now stands second in punt return defense in all of Division III after Saturday's game. Alfred attempted a return but was immediately ridden back for two yards on the play. Opponents are now averaging -0.20 yards per return against Utica this season, which ranks them second nationally behind Heidelberg. Heidelberg has a narrow edge at -0.29. Medici is 36th in the nation in punting average to guide the unit with an average of 39.10 yards per kick.

That'll Addo It: Junior linebacker Kwasi Addo (Menands, NY/Shaker) leads the Pioneers in tackles this season with 76 total tackles. He has 177 for his career, and needs just 17 more to tie Travis Ladd for tenth on the All-Time list. He has 73 solo tackles in his career, of which 32 have come this season. Addo also has two sacks, 2.5 tackles for loss, and an interception to his name this season. He has eight career sacks and needs two more to crack the top ten in school history. He is third in the Empire 8 conference in tackles per game. He is 59th in the country in total tackles.

Excellent Elijah: Elijah Belle (Plainfield, NJ/Plainfield) leads the team in pass breakups this season with seven, and now has seventeen in his career. That mark ties him with Pioneer Hall of Famer Marcus Maroney for the fourth most in a career in school history. He needs one more to crack the top ten for a single season in school history. Belle leads the team with three interceptions, two of which have been returned for touchdowns. His three career interception return touchdowns are a school-record for a career, and his two this season have set a single season mark at Utica. His seven career interceptions rank him alone in fifth in school history.

Beaubrunning The Show: Defensive back Anthony Beaubrun (West Hempstead, NY/West Hempstead) has 60 tackles this season to rank third on the team. He also ranks sixth in career interceptions with six picks over the course of his career.

The Schempp Story: Defensive lineman Robbie Schempp (Webster, NY/Webster Thomas) continues to make an impact on the Utica record books as a pass rusher. He has a team-leading three sacks this season, good for a total of 11.5 in his career. He is now tied for fifth in school history alongside Michael Herberger and Keanu Heedram (Rochester, NY/Rush-Henrietta).

Scala Stops Ya: Antonio Scala (Coram, NY/Longwood) leads the team with 7.5 tackles for loss, and has as many as he did in his first three seasons combined. He is fourth in school history with 15 career tackles for loss. He is eighth in the conference in that category this season.

Nish Notes: Rover John Nish (Canastota, NY/Oneida) is third on the team in tackles this season with 53, and also leads the team with a pair of forced fumbles. He has 33 solo tackles to stand second on the team in that category.

Vangalen's Value: Ryan VanGalen (Clifton Park, NY/Shenedehowa) did an efficient job of filling in for Logan Wilcox (Utica, NY/Proctor) at quarterback this week. VanGalen completed nearly 75 percent of his passes for 120 yards and a touchdown, and has thrown for a touchdown in each of his two starts this season.

A Jolt Of Jamarious: Jamarious Morgan (Utica, NY/Thomas R. Proctor) is Utica's leading rusher this season with 534 net rushing yards to go with five touchdowns. He is averaging 5.9 yards per carry, and is averaging 66.75 rushing yards per game to lead the Pioneers. His per game average ranks fifth in the Empire 8 conference, and he is seventh in the conference in rushing touchdowns. He has Utica's longest carry of the season at 62 yards.

A Backfield Bonanza: The Pioneers have had twelve different players get at least one carry so far this season.

Miller Time: Senior wide receiver and captain Peyton Miller (Chemung, NY/Waverly) is having another strong season as he leads Utica with 550 yards receiving and a career-high seven touchdowns. He is seventh in the conference with 68.8 yards per game. Miller has 1,726 career receiving yards to rank sixth in program history. He needs just 69 more receiving yards to move into the top five in program history in career yardage. His fourteen career receiving touchdowns are the fourth-most all-time at Utica, tying him with Jerred Beniquez. One more would move him into a tie for third with Imani Vincent (Brooklyn, NY/Sheepshead Bay). The record for career receiving touchdowns is 30 held by Jeremy Meier. His 144 career catches are fifth most in the history of the program.

In The Wright Direction: Keegan Wright (Cicero, NY/Cicero North Syracuse) continues to enjoy a breakout senior campaign as he ranks second on the team with 394 yards receiving. He is eighth in receiving yards per game in the Empire 8 conference and has two receiving touchdowns.

In The Red Zone: The Pioneers have gone 28 of 33 in the red zone this season. 16 of those scores have been touchdowns.

Spreading It Around: Five different receivers have caught a touchdown pass for Utica this season, including Miller, Wright, John James O'Connor (Auburn, NY/Weedsport), Nate Palmer (Verona, NY/Vernon Verona Sherrill), and Kevin Warmack (Utica,NY/Utica Notre Dame).

Scouting Union: The Dutchmen are a perfect 8-0 under head coach Jeff Behrman this season, and are ranked fourteenth in the latest D3Football.com Poll. They are the 2019 Liberty League Champions and have already punched a ticket to the NCAA Tournament after defeating Ithaca last week by a 31-21 score. The NCAA berth will be their first since 2006. Union rolled up 417 yards of offense in their win over Ithaca last week. The Bombers were ranked in the top ten at the time of the game. Ike Irabor rushed for 181 yards for the Dutchmen and had three touchdowns, and the Union defense held Ithaca to its lowest point total of the season. Union averages 36.25 points per game, and allows 13.63. The Union offense is converting third downs at a 40 percent rate. Opponents are averaging just 71.9 rushing yards against Union this season, a figure that ranks fifteenth nationally for the Dutchmen. Irabor has 952 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns this season. Quarterback William Bellamy has thrown for 1500 yards and 16 touchdowns this season, and has thrown just two interceptions. He is thirteenth in the nation in passer efficiency. His top target is Andre Ross Jr, who has 553 yards receiving and eight touchdowns. Colin Lama leads the Union defense with 65 tackles, while Vincenzo DiCaterino has 12 tackles for loss. The team is 29th nationally in tackles for loss.

What's Next: The Pioneers will host their 2019 Senior Day game on Saturday, November 16th against Hartwick College. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m.