'Saders rally; Randolph throws for 414 yards in comeback.

Byline: Jennifer Toland

WORCESTER - On his knees late in the second quarter after a failed fourth-down conversion and another fruitless trip deep inside Georgetown territory, Holy Cross quarterback Dominic Randolph slammed his hand on the ground. It was a rare display by the fifth-year senior, but it was that kind of first half for the Crusaders.

"It was frustrating," Randolph said. "Being close and coming up short is frustrating, but we kept our poise, and everyone just kept playing and put (the frustration) behind us."

Randolph rallied Holy Cross in the second half, the HC defense shut out Georgetown for three quarters, and the Crusaders won their opener, 20-7, on a splendid day at Fitton Field.

Randolph was 36 of 56 for 414 yards, surpassed 10,000 for his career and became Holy Cross' and the Patriot League's all-time leader in passing yards. He also broke the PL record for most total offense in a career.

"He's just unbelievable," Holy Cross senior wide receiver Bill Edger said. "I've never seen a player like him. I can't say enough about him."

Randolph entered the game with 9,679 passing yards, 19 behind Jeff Wiley, who played for HC from 1985-88. Lafayette's Marko Glavic had held the PL marks for career passing yards (9,819) and total offense (10,064).

It was the sixth time in Randolph's career he went over 400 yards in a game. He completed fourth-quarter touchdown passes to tight end Paul Nielsen and Edger. Georgetown defensive back Rick Rattay intercepted Randolph twice.

Holy Cross has won 10 straight against the Hoyas.

Georgetown opened the game with an 11-play scoring drive that finished with James Brady's 38-yard touchdown pass to Keerome Lawrence.

The Crusaders had their chances in the first half, but two visits to the red zone yielded just three points.

Perry Townsend's blocked punt set up HC at the Georgetown 15 late in the first quarter, but after getting as far as the 3-yard line, the Crusaders couldn't find the end zone and settled for a Rob Dornfried 22-yard field goal.

On the first play of the second quarter, Holy Cross senior linebacker Sean Lamkin intercepted Brady, but HC failed to take advantage. Jayah Kaisamba broke up Randolph's pass for Edger in the end zone and after a holding penalty, the Crusaders were forced to punt.

Later in the second, Randolph completed passes to Freddie Santana, Nick Cole and Matt Bellomo to push HC inside the Georgetown 10. On third-and-goal from the 6, Randolph's pass went off Edger's fingertips in the corner of the end zone. A botched snap led to a missed 23-yard field goal by Dornfried.

"We were just trying to do things we didn't really need to do in the first part of the game," HC coach Tom Gilmore said. "Give Georgetown all the credit in the world. They were really ready to play. They really pressured us, and they did simple little things on defense, and we weren't disciplined. But the good news is when we settled down, we started to do a lot of good things."

HC found itself in an unusual position at halftime - trailing, 7-3. The Crusaders outscored opponents, 213-136, in the first half of games last season.

After that first Georgetown possession, a spirited HC defense kept the Crusaders in the game. The Hoyas went 65 yards on their scoring drive, but HC limited Georgetown to 50 yards the rest of the first half and 169 for the game.

Holy Cross held Georgetown to 2 for 16 on third-down conversions.

"Every yard counts," Lamkin said. "We stepped it up on third down and stopped them."

Georgetown stopped the HC offense at the 2-yard line midway through the third quarter, and Dornfried's 19-yard field goal made it 7-6. On HC's next possession, sophomore running back Francis Camara fumbled at the Georgetown 1, but the Hoyas failed to advance the ball after taking possession and gave Holy Cross great field position at the Hoyas' 31 to start the fourth quarter.

Randolph's 13-yard pass to Edger and an 18-yard TD completion to Nielsen gave HC its first lead with 14:21 to play.

"At halftime, coach just told us to play like it's a new game," Randolph said, "and that's what we did. We executed."

Holy Cross rolled up 338 of its 519 total yards in the second half.

Randolph completed a 7-yard TD pass to Edger with 6:52 left.

"We started out real slow, and in the first half we had some dropped balls, me included, and some busts in route running," said Edger, who had seven catches for a team-high 82 yards. "Our defense kept us in it, thank God, and our line played well. We were ready. We practiced well. I think we were just a little nervous. It's good to get the jitters out."

NAME: COLLEGE OF THE HOLY CROSS 

ART: PHOTOS

CUTLINE: (1) Georgetown receiver Philip Oladeji is tackled by Holy Cross' Anthony DiMichele, left, Kyle Smith, center, and Andrew Cialino in the first half. (2) Georgetown receiver Wilburn Logan is unable to hang onto the ball as he is hit by Holy Cross' John Myrick in the first half.

PHOTOG: T&G Staff Photos/PAUL KAPTEYN