University of Richmond Athletics
University of Richmond
No. 9 Youngstown St
Kirchner's Kick, Hill's Pick Do Trick For Spiders
12/29/2000 | Football
Nov. 25, 2000
RICHMOND, Va. - Sophomore Doug Kirchner nailed a 24-yard field goal that tied the game with 2:47 left and junior cornerback Jason Hill returned an interception 44 yards for a touchdown with 1:22 remaining to give the Richmond Spiders a 10-3 victory over the Youngstown State Penguins in the first round of the NCAA I-AA Playoffs this afternoon at UR Stadium.
The eighth-seeded Spiders (10-2) will travel to top-seeded Montana for next Saturday's quarterfinals. Ninth-seeded Youngstown State concludes its season with a 9-3 mark.
On a cold, wet afternoon, the teams played a scoreless first half. Freshman Jake Stewart missed a pair of field goals for the Penguins in the first half that could have put them on the scoreboard first. He missed a 37-yarder early in the first quarter and a 41-yard attempt on the final play of the second period.
Youngstown State moved to the Richmond seven on its first possession of the third quarter, with 58 yards coming on a pass from junior quarterback Jeff Ryan to junior wideout Sean Guerriero. That set up a 24-yard field goal by Stewart that put the Penguins on top 3-0. Later in the third period, the Spiders moved to the YSU 21, but Kirchner missed a 38-yard field goal and the Penguins continued to lead 3-0.
Richmond put together its most impressive drive of the afternoon in the fourth quarter. The Spiders moved 71 yards in 18 plays in 9:24, advancing to the YSU seven, where Kirchner hit a 24-yard field goal with 2:47 remaining to tie the game at 3-3.
The Penguins picked up a first down and moved to their own 37, where Ryan was picked off by Hill at the YSU 44. Hill took the ball down the sideline to the end zone to put Richmond ahead 10-3 with 1:22 left.
Senior cornerback Harold Hill, older brother of Jason, intercepted Ryan with 0:41 remaining to secure the win for the Spiders.
Richmond's defense held the Penguins to 94 yards rushing, 95 yards passing, 189 yards of total offense and eight first downs.
Richmond set a school record for wins in a season with 10. It was Richmond's sixth win this season by a touchdown or less. The Spiders won a playoff game for the first time since 1984, when Richmond topped Boston University 35-33 in the first round.
