Football | 11/9/2017 10:50:00 PM

Box Score

    FAIRMONT, W.Va. – Senior tailback Jeremiah Ortiz went over the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the year but West Liberty couldn't overcome four turnovers here Thursday night as Fairmont State pulled out a 13-7 win in a mutual season finale at Duvall-Rosier Field.
    It was a defensive struggle throughout as the host Falcons (8-3, 8-2) scored the only points of the second half to hand the hard-luck Hilltoppers (3-8, 3-7) their fourth loss by a margin of six points or less on the season.
    West Liberty had first crack at breaking a 7-7 halftime tie when play resumed in the third quarter. Midway through the frame, WLU drove deep into Fairmont territory only to come away empty-handed when FSU's Naiquan Thomas intercepted a Hilltopper pass in the end zone for one of his two interceptions on the night.
    The Falcons drove back into West Liberty territory as the third quarter wound down but couldn't put any points on the board as Sam Keil's 47-yard field goal try drifted wide right on the first snap of the fourth quarter.
    The Hilltoppers came up inches short of a first down on third-and-2 at the WLU 39 but a short punt gave the ball back to the Falcons at their own 35 and the hosts' offense suddenly roared to life.
    Fairmont needed just two snaps to cross midfield before WR Shawn Harris got behind the West Liberty secondary to haul in a 44-yard touchdown pass from QB Takwan Crews-Naylor. Keil missed the PAT but the Falcons led, 13-7, with 11:39 to play.
    The Hilltoppers crossed midfield on their ensuing possession but Ortiz was thrown for a loss on fourth-and-2 from the Fairmont 46 and the visitors never threatened again.
    Ortiz had given West Liberty a 7-0 lead when he powered in from 2 yards out to cap a lengthy 13-play, 71-yard scoring march at 6:58 of the first quarter. Fairmont's only points of the second quarter came on a 6-yard TD pass from Crews-Naylor to Alquawn Vickers, tying the game at 7-7 with 9:31 left in the half.
    A senior from Rochester, N.Y., Ortiz was the game's leading rusher with 79 yards on 24 carries. That pushed his season totals to 1,031 yards on 222 attempts, making him only the sixth Hilltopper to pass the 1,000-yard rushing milestone in 92 years of West Liberty football.
    Ortiz's 1,000-yard season – the ninth in school history – was the first since Kevon Calhoun posted back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in 2009 and 2010. Eddie Hills (2006, 2007) and Derrick Stickles (2003, 2005) are the other WLU backs with multiple 1,000-yard seasons.
    With Ortiz leading the way, West Liberty rushed for 106 yards on 33 carries while O'Connor completed 13-of-29 passes for 165 yards with 3 interceptions. Freshman DE Kenyon Felder had a huge game in his first career start, tying for the team lead with 8 tackles, 3 tackles-for-loss and a pair of quarterback sacks.
    Crews-Naylor completed 16-of-26 passes for 217 yards and 2 TDs with no interceptions to lead the Falcons. Harris paced all receivers with 7 catches for 112 yards while Terrell Charles ran for 72 yards on 24 carries.
  West Liberty                               7  0  0  0  –   7
Fairmont State                           0  7  0  6 – 13      WLU: Ortiz 2 run (Morris kick), 6:58      FSU: Vickers 6 pass from Crews-Naylor (Keil kick), 9:31      FSU: Harris 44 pass from Crews-Naylor (kick failed), 11:39      RUSHING: West Liberty 33-106; Ortiz 24-79; O'Connor 2-20; Johnson 7-7. Fairmont State 42-120; Charles 24-72; Darden 7-19; Crews-Naylor 7-12; Hamlin 1-(-4); Team 3-(-9)
     PASSING: West Liberty 13-29-165-0td-3x (all by O'Connor). Fairmont State 16-27-212-2td-0x (Naylor 16-26-217-2td-0x, Team 0-1-0-0-0).
     RECEIVING: West Liberty 13-165; Jones 2-37; Hardesty 3-28; McLean 2-26; Kargbo 2-25; Mayo 1-18; McCullough 1-17; Ortiz 1-10; Durbin 1-4; Fairmont State 16-212; Harris 7-112; Jackson 3-38; Vickers 3-33; Faett 1-12; Charles 1-10; Boyd 1-7
     First downs: West Liberty 17, Fairmont State 19
     Fumbles: West Liberty 2-1, Fairmont State 1-1
     Penalties: West Liberty 4-38; Fairmont State 9-90
     Time of Possession: West Liberty 28:30, Fairmont State 31:30