COLLEGE FOOTBALL Titans battle back from deficit to down Thiel

Matt Robison threw for 202 yards in the 15-10 victory.
By BILL ALBRIGHT
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. -- Westminster overcame early mistakes and a 10-point deficit to defeat Thiel, 15-10, at Harold Burry Stadium Saturday.
"[The defense] did a real good job putting us in a position to win the game," said Westminster coach Jerry Schmitt. "We could've let it go a little bit, then you get worried. We did make our share of mistakes, but credit the defense for holding us in there."
The Tomcats (1-5, 1-2 President's Athletic Conference) parlayed an interception of a Matt Robison pass into a field goal and a fumble recovery into a touchdown to take a 10-0 lead late in the first half.
However, Thiel coach Jack Leipheimer felt that his club could have put more points on the board.
"It definitely should have been more," said Leipheimer. "We didn't come away with any points the one time and the other time, we had to settle for the field goal. We just have to find a way to put the ball in the end zone."
Sticking with him: Even though Robison tossed a pair of interceptions, Schmitt had no reservations about asking his quarterback to continue to throw the football.
"They forced us to throw the ball because of their [defensive] fronts," explained Schmitt. "When you throw a couple [of interceptions] you tend to worry about it, but we needed to because it was open. Matt kept his head and did a real nice job."
The Titans (2-4, 1-2), sparked by a 33-yard kickoff return by Matt Steve, responded with a 51-yard, seven-play drive capped by Robison's TD pass to Steven Scott right before halftime to cut the Thiel lead to 10-6.
All of the scoring and most of the offense in the second half belonged to the Titans.
Stepping up: With the running game almost nonexistent, Robison and wideout Brian Lipiello took charge. Robison passed for 202 yards, and Lipiello caught eight passes for 127 yards.
"It was a must for us to pull this one out," said Robison. "It was exciting right down to the end."
"We needed this win so bad because the past few weeks [three straight losses] have been real tough for us," said Lipiello. "We are real happy to have won the game, but we don't really like to make it this close every time. At least we got the 'W'."
The Titans scored on a 31-yard field goal by Josh Simpson midway through the third period, then reserve quarterback Kevin Huber ran in from 2 yards out for a touchdown to give the Titans the lead for good.
The Tomcats drove to a first-and-goal at the 2, but Farrell High graduate Rennie Gash fumbled and Titan defensive tackle Charles Kiger jumped on the loose ball to preserve the win.