Box Score

WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Sept. 25) – Whether it was the inspiration of honoring two fallen comrades before the game, the excitement of a home opener or just some snazzy new black third jerseys, the Waynesburg University football team put on a show in front of the crowd at John F. Wiley Stadium on Saturday.

Facing Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) rival Grove City, a team they had lost to in each of the last two seasons, the Yellow Jackets rolled to a 42-16 win against the Wolverines. It was the largest margin of victory for Waynesburg against Grove City since 2004, when the Jackets won 51-14 on their way to an appearance in the ECAC Southeast Championship Game.

With the win, Waynesburg is now 2-1 overall and 2-0 in PAC play. Grove City falls to 2-2 and 1-1 in conference action.

Waynesburg looked strong in all factions of the game from the opening kickoff, which went to the visiting Wolverines. The Jacket defense set the tempo for the afternoon when junior linebacker Scott Bogdan pounced on a fumble at the Grove City 33 just three minutes into the game.

While the defense got off to a fantastic start, there were questions about the Waynesburg offense before the game even started after it was announced that star senior quarterback Brad Dawson would be limited because of an injury suffered in practice. Junior quarterback Josh Graham, who missed all of last season with an injury of his own, stepped in and looked like a polished veteran. He also had plenty of help from a solid Jacket rushing attack.

Graham led his team on a five-play, 33-yard drive, which was helped out by a Grove City pass interference penalty, that resulted in the game's first touchdown. Freshman running back Dominic Moore capped the drive with his team-leading fourth touchdown run of the season to put his team up 6-0. Sophomore kicker Jon Storck tacked on the extra point to make it 7-0.

After the Jacket defense forced the Wolverines to go three-and-out on the possession following the touchdown, the Waynesburg offense came out and put together another scoring drive. Graham went a perfect four-for-four and found wide receiver Jeff Young on a 37-yard touchdown strike to end the seven-play, 57-yard march to the end zone. Another Storck PAT made it 14-0 Jackets with just under 3:30 to go in the first quarter.

Neither squad was able to put up any more points until the early part of the second quarter when the home team took full control of the contest. After Graham hit tight end Adam Moses for a 16-yard gain on the first play of the possession, the Jackets ran it three-straight plays, with the last carry being a seven-yard touchdown scamper by freshman Bertrand Ngampa. Another successful kick by Storck made it 21-0 Jackets.

Grove City got back into the game after a long touchdown catch-and-run made it 21-7 with just over seven minutes left to play, but the Jacket offense was able to regain a three-touchdown advantage before halftime.

Graham produced another picture perfect throw to Young that did the damage and capped a four-play, 42-yard drive that ended with just over two minutes remaining in the first half. Storck's fourth PAT of the game made it 28-7 Jackets.

However, Grove City wasn't ready to admit defeat just yet, as the Wolverines went to the hurry up offense to march 71 yards in seven plays and cut Waynesburg's lead down to 28-14, which ended up being the score at halftime.

Though the Wolverines appeared to have some momentum heading into the locker room, the Jackets made sure to stomp out Grove City's comeback attempt early in the third quarter. On the first possession of the second half, Graham continued his stellar day with his third touchdown pass to Young, this one from 17 yards out, to cap a seven-play, 78-yard drive that put Waynesburg back in the driver's seat 35-14.

Later in the third, the Jacket defense put an exclamation point on the game when sophomore linebacker Jordan Helmick intercepted a Zach Gross pass on the first play of a Wolverine drive and sprinted 28 yards for a touchdown. Storck nailed down his final kick of the day to make it 42-14 with just over 4:00 to play in the quarter.

From there, the two defenses took over as both schools went deep into their respective benches. The Jackets gave up two points on a meaningless safety that was committed to chew time off the clock late in the fourth quarter.

With Graham under center for most of the day, the Waynesburg offense didn't miss a beat. The Jackets racked up 358 yards of total offense, including 200 through the air from Graham, who completed 16-of-23 attempts with three touchdowns and just one interception. Young led the Jacket receiving corps with three receptions, all going for touchdowns, and 90 yards. Senior Kyle Kyper pulled in a team-high four receptions for 33 yards.

Waynesburg's running back by committee ground attack was effective in keeping the Wolverine defense guessing. Seven different Jackets toted the rock on the day for a total of 158 yards and two scores. Junior Justin Falcon led the ball carriers with a season-high 110 yards on 19 carries.

Grove City quarterback Zach Gross, one of three Wolverine signal callers to see the field on the day, passed for 188 yards, two touchdowns and two picks, while completing 15-of-33 tries through the air. Most of his yardage came on a 73-yard touchdown catch-and-run by Blaine Miller, who pulled in a game-high six balls for a contest-best 106 yards receiving. Miller also led the team in rushing with 21 yards on eight carries.

The Jacket defense had another impressive performance in holding an opponent under 300 yards (297) for a second-straight game, including just 23 net yards rushing. Junior defensive lineman #Darryl Moore, Jr.# led the charge with four tackles, including 2.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. Waynesburg's defense also forced four turnovers, including three picks. Helmick, safety Brandon Myers and defensive lineman Matt Krause each had an interception, to go along with Bogdan's fumble recovery.

The win was an emotional one for Waynesburg and its fans as it was the first game played at John F. Wiley Stadium since the deaths of then-freshman defensive lineman Clint DeRosa, who passed away in April, and all-time defensive great and graduate assistant coach Mike Czerwien, who passed away in July. The two were honored with a moment of silence before kickoff.

Waynesburg will look to run its current winning streak to three games next Saturday, when it hits the road to face Bethany in another PAC contest. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.