Patient. Team-oriented. Committed. To say Paxson Hayes has waited his turn would be an understatement.

But once his time came, Hayes certainly made the most of it.

On Saturday afternoon at Lebanon Valley College’s Arnold Field, Hayes tallied a pair of touchdowns in the Flying Dutchmen football squad’s 24-14 victory over FDU-Florham. For the senior tailback out of Annville-Cleona, they were the first two touchdowns of his college career.

Hayes’ first touchdown, a seven-yard scamper, gave Lebanon Valley a 7-0 lead with 2:55 left in the opening quarter. The TD capped a nine-play, 61-yard march by the Flying Dutchmen.

His second score came 5:26 into the second half, and it was a two-yard plunge which pushed Lebanon Valley’s lead to 14-6. That touchdown was the final play of a ten-play, 51-yard possession.

The result moved Lebanon Valley to 2-2 on the season.

Afterwards, Lebanon Valley head coach Joe Buehler praised Hayes’ running style, saying his low center of gravity made him hard to tackle and an ideal ball carrier around the goal line.

For the season, the 5-11, 198-pound Hayes has toted the pigskin 13 times for 67 yards.

– Jeff Falk