September 9, 2006
Methodist Comes Up Short Against Guilford
Junior Mike Hill rushed for 82 yards in loss

FAYETTEVILLE, NC-  The Methodist Monarchs opened their season with a 11-27 loss to long-time opponent Guilford College.  The Quakers are the only team the Monarchs have played every season of football and now stand at 6-12 all-time.  Guilford moves to 2-0 on the season while Methodist falls to 0-1.

On the first drive of the game, Guilford made a strong push to score.  Quaker quarterback Josh Vogelbach connected with Joe Joyner to spot the ball on the Methodist 3 yard line.  Vogelbach attempted to hit Joyner again for incomplete and on third down attempted to pass to Chris Barnette but Monarch senior Chris Gauntlett was there to break up the play.  The Quakers settled for a 20 yard field goal at 11:36 in the first quarter.

Methodist struggled to create any offense on their first possession.  Senior punter Jordan Allen punted 29 yards to give the ball back to Guilford on their own 42 yard line.  Vogelbach moved the ball down the field with four pass completions and a 2-yard rush from Zach Bobak.  On the Methodist 20 yard line, Vogelbach dropped back to hit Joyner again for a 20 yard throw into the end zone.  Travis Frazier hit the extra point to go up 10-0.

Methodist moved the ball towards the other end under the leadership of sophomore quarterback Antonio Bartee.  The Monarchs found themselves on the Guilford 8, before Mike Hill fumbled and Guilford recovered at the 17 yard line.  Methodist came back with a Vogelbach sack by Chris Gauntlett and junior Jeremy Perkins to end the first quarter.  Frazier started the second with a punt blocked by Nevin Rayford to score a Methodist safety.

Guilford made another drive later in the second quarter for Frazier to attempt a field goal from 42 yards out.  The kick was good, extending the Quakers lead to 13-2.  Frazier punts and Methodist regains possession.  Hill rushes for 12 and 10 yards before Bartee takes over to move to the Methodist 46 yard line.  Sophomore R.J. Lassiter steps up and runs for 24 yards to the Guilford 30.  Bartee makes another run and senior Patrick Larkin steps up to hit a 40 yard field goal.  On the next Guilford possession Mitchell Collier stops a drive with an interception in the end zone with 59 seconds left in the half.  Methodist makes a push to score, but the offense is left on the Guilford 6-yard line with no time remaining.

Methodist put a stop to the Guilford scoring in the third quarter with strong pass rushing against Vogelbach and a missed field goal attempt by Frazier from 43 yards out.  Methodist had three possessions but could not advance past the Guilford 48 yard line.  The Quakers started the fourth quarter on the Methodist 31 yard line before Vogelbach made two passes to Micah Rushing to score.  With Frazier's point after good, Guilford extended their lead to 20-5.  Methodist came back down the field beginning with a 54 yard kickoff return by senior George Sands.  Mike Hill rushed for 14 yards before Bartee made a big push for 25 yards rushing, but came out roughed up on the play.  Sitting on the Guilford seven yard line, Hill made a 6 yard run to the 1 yard line before pushing it over at the 11:05 mark.  Methodist was called for a false start before the kick attempt and Larkin missed the point after the five yard penalty.

With Gulford still leading 20-11, the two teams traded possessions for most of the fourth quarter.  Junior Rob Schultz stepped in for Bartee and was intercepted at the Methodist 33 yard line.  Guilford turned around and Gauntlett intercepted Vogelbach's pass in the end zone.  When Guilford regained possession, Vogelbach kept moving the ball down the field with passes to Barnette and Rushing.  Guilford scored another touchdown with a 4-yard pass from Vogelbach to Barnette.  Methodist would have one more possession, but Danny Langston's interception of Bartee's pass after a sack by Markas Brunson ended the drive.

Guilford finished the game with the 27-11 win behind the 403 yards passing from Josh Vogelbach.  For Methodist, Bartee passed for 112 yards and rushed for 51.  Mike Hill finished with 82 yards rushing and one touchdown.  Mario Paylor led Guilford with 10 tackles, while Gauntlett finished with 9 tackles for the Monarchs.  Guilford travels to Averett next Saturday while Methodist will face Chowan at home at 1 pm.