Box Score
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — Led by sophomore wide receiver Matthew Coston (Queens, N.Y./Dover HS) (Queens, NY/Dover) and three safeties, the Lincoln University of Pennsylvania football team blanked the Cheyney University, 12-0, Sunday at Charles Martin Stadium at Northeast High School.
With the win, Lincoln begins the season 1-0 for the thirdconsecutive year. Last year, the Lions defeated Cheyney, 41-20 at Northeast High School. LU is now 10-0-1 versus the Wolves.
Coston connected with sophomore Laquan Williams (Philadelphia, Pa./John Bartram HS) (Philadelphia, PA/Bartram) with 10 minutes left in the first for Lincoln's lone touchdown, capping a six-play, 62-yard drive. LU then recorded three safeties — two in the second quarter and one in the fourth — to pitch the second shutout under head coach O.J. Abanishe and defensive coordinator Herb Pickens. Last year, Lincoln defeated Livingstone, 10-0, in Salisbury, N.C.
Although the Lincoln offense scored the one touchdown, it had to be pleased with how it moved the ball freely down the field, recording 331 yards of total offense, its most since recording 393 in that blanking of Livingstone. Coston, the leading returning receiver from 2009 continued his maturation, catching five passes for 105 yards, becoming just the second wide-receiver to reach triple digits since the re-establishment of the football program in 2008.
Williams, who went 10-for-21 for 129 yards and the touchdown, ran for a game high 97 yards, the most of his career. In the waning moments, though, it was junior tailback D'Ante Smith (Bowie. Md./Riverdale Baptist HS) (Bowie, Md./Riverdale Baptist) who iced the game, as he ran for 59 of his 89 yards in the second half.
Defensively, the Lions limited Cheyney to just two field goal opportunities, the second of which was blocked. The Wolves totaled just 81 yards of offense: 65 rushing and 16 passing.
Lincoln successfully moved the ball inside the Cheyney red zone on the drive after the touchdown, but the drive stalled deep in CU territory. The Lion defense held, and the snap on the ensuing Cheyney punt went over the head of Tyler Wilkinson for a safety and an 8-0 LU edge.
Nine minutes later, Lincoln maneuvered the ball inside the Cheyney one, but again the Wolves held. Three rushing attempts yielded just one yard, and the Wolves instead took the safety by stepping out of the back of the end zone. Lincoln led at half time 10-0.
In the third quarter, the Wolves' showed they too could move the ball, and midway through the frame, they attempted a 42 yarder, but Wilkinson's attempt died short and to the left of the uprights. Early in the fourth, Lincoln blocked a 37-yard try, preserving the shutout.
In the final minutes, defensive lineman Eugene Lancaster (Virginia Beach, Va./First Colonial HS) (Virginia Beach, Va./Louisburg College) dropped James Ramsey for LU's third safety. Lancaster led Lincoln with five tackles.
Next up:
Lincoln travels to New Haven, Conn., to face face the Chargers in the Harmony Classic, with a 1 p.m. kickoff.
