BRIDGEWATER, Va. (WHSV) – The Bridgewater football team returns to the Jopson Athletic Complex this weekend to host Hampden-Sydney.

Bridgewater (5-2, 3-1) is coming off its first conference loss against Randolph-Macon 49-16. The Eagles turned the ball over three times on offense; this included two interceptions by Jaicere Bateman that were returned for touchdowns.

Bridgewater head coach Scott Lemn said the offense lacked consistency and the offensive mistakes were too much to overcome.

“We should be able to learn from this,” Lemn said after the defeat. “We have a new opponent and a new team that wants to beat us.”

The loss at Randolph-Macon put Bridgewater in first place in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference, with Randolph-Macon one game behind Washington and Lee.

“We still have a lot of goals ahead of us,” Lemn said.

Hampden-Sydney is led by first-year head coach Vince Luvara after serving as defensive coordinator at Washington & Jefferson. Under Luvara’s leadership, the Presidents’ defense was one of the best in Division III, recording 64 All-Presidents Athletic Conference selections.

Offensively, the Tigers (4-3, 2-2) are led by Carter Sido. Lemn describes him as a dynamic player who can beat you with his arm and his feet. Sido looks at Ethan Dowdy, who leads the ODAC in scoring.

“This is a group where we have to be ready to defend from the back end, but we also have to take our time,” Lemn said.

Defensively, Lemn expects Hampden-Sydney to offer a variety of looks.

“You see a team playing in an upward trend,” Lemn said.

Start time on Saturday is at 14.00

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