The Colonels finish their season (2-8) after winning a tough game versus their rival school, the King’s Monarchs (4-6).

The game ended at 24-17.

The Colonels went to McCarthy Stadium, on the other side of Wilkes Barre, to play the team that beat them 27-21 at home last year. The Monarchs were ranked higher than the Colonels this season, but the Colonels knew that the Mayor’s Cup is not the same as rest.

“Even though King’s was ranked above us, our team knew that it did not matter. The rivalry between us and them gets the players really hyped for the game,” Robert Nye, the Wilkes linebacker said.

The players knew there was nothing to lose. The final game of the season against their rival school in front of a big crowd was the perfect time to shine.

The sun was barely shining, and it was very cold. Home crowds from both teams came to watch the game, FOX was covering the game live, and radio hosts announced the game.

The crowds in the stands were very loud.

The Colonels jumped out to a quick lead in the beginning of the game and kept the pressure on the Monarchs for the whole first half. The Monarchs had four turnovers during the game, which were three fumbles and one interception.

One fumble was returned for a touchdown, along with another touchdown from the runningback, and a field goal put 17 points on the board first. The Monarchs scored a touchdown pass ending halftime at 17-7.

The Monarchs looked better starting the second half. They scored a field goal in the beginning of the third quarter, which brought the score to 17-10. The Colonels then put a drive together filled with penalties from mostly the Monarchs, and crowd moans that ultimately came down to the quarterback rushing the ball for long touchdown.

The Monarchs turned around and scored a touchdown about a minute later, which made the score 24-17. The scoring stopped, and it was only halfway through the third quarter. The game remained close with only a touchdown away to tie it.

The Colonels final drive made it down the field and still ran the clock out after the Monarchs used all of their time outs. A personal foul advanced the Colonels to a first down, thus winning the game with a knee to run the time out.

The result of this Mayor’s Cup lifts the Colonels record in the Mayor’s Cup to 14-6. The rival teams competed for the 29th time in history. This was before they named it the Mayor’s Cup, and that record is still dominated by the Colonels 21-8.

“The rivalry is based on territory. Wilkes-Barre cannot be a place for two schools. Wilkes University will forever be better than King’s College,” said Michael Melograno, a sophomore student at Wilkes.

Melograno knows that neighboring schools can bring positive competition towards each other, especially in sports.

This concludes the season for the football team. For further information on sports at Wilkes University, visit www.gowilkesu.com.