WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Oct. 28) – It's been a rough year for the Waynesburg University football team, which came into Saturday's Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) matchup with Thiel looking for its first win of the year. The Yellow Jackets went back to basics on offense and put together maybe its best defensive effort of 2017 as they emphatically broke out of a 11-game losing streak that stretched back to 2016 with a 34-7 win over the Tomcats.
 
The Jackets (1-7, 1-5) made their first noticeable change before kickoff as junior Jake Dougherty made his first start at quarterback since week three of 2016. Dougherty set personal collegiate lows in pass attempts (five), completions (two) and yards (three), but played a major role in Waynesburg's breakout day on the ground.
 
Dougherty rushed for 82 of the Yellow Jackets' 284 yards on the ground, which is the program's biggest single-game output since 2012. Sophomore Chad Walker led the assault with a team-high 104 yards on 16 carries, while junior Austin Wilson chipped in 84 yards on 19 totes. The trio combined for four of Waynesburg's five touchdowns, with Wilson finding the end zone on two occasions.
 
While the vast majority of the day's scoring came from the home team's smash mouth run attack, Saturday's first touchdown was on arguably the team's the most exciting play of the fall. After the defense forced a Thiel (1-7, 1-5) three-and-out on the game's opening possession, freshman JaWuan Jones fielded the ensuing punt at the 16-yard-line. Jones effortlessly weaved his way through the Tomcat coverage unit and broke out for an 84-yard touchdown return.
 
After junior Garret Guthrie knocked down his first of four successful extra point tries, the Jackets held a 7-0 lead with just under 13 minutes left to play in the first quarter.
 
Thiel answered the opening score with a big play of their own that made up the entirety of a 72-yard scoring possession. Just 2:30 into the ball game, the score was tied at 7-7.
 
Waynesburg fired back with the first of several lengthy, productive drives that led to a touchdown. The Jacket possession consisted of 10 plays, the last nine of which were on the ground, and covered 66 yards. Wilson recorded his first of two scores from six yards out to give the Orange and Black the lead back at 14-7.
 
Waynesburg carried its seven-point lead into the second quarter, where the opportunistic defense set up the Jackets' third touchdown of the day. Junior linebacker John-Glen Davis logged his second of two fumble recoveries to give the ball to the offense at the Thiel 34.
 
Five running plays later, four of which were by Dougherty, including the final tote from a yard out, allowed the home team's lead to grow to 20-7.
 
Another stop by the Jacket defense led to yet another Thiel punt, which put the ball at the Waynesburg 46-yard-line. The home team traversed 54 yards on eight plays, but not without some help from the Tomcats. Facing a fourth-and-seven situation, senior R.J. Leon executed a picture-perfect punt down to the Thiel two. Things got even better for the Jackets thanks to penalties for a personal foul and unsportsmanlike conduct.
 
After the flags were assessed, the Jacket offense came back on with the ball at the 12-yard-line. Four runs later, Walker made the score 27-7 with a three-yard scoring plunge with just second left in the first half. The defense did its part to keep Thiel off the board before halftime.
 
Neither team scored in the third quarter, but one final marathon drive for the Jackets in the fourth sealed up their first triumph of 2017, which also meant the first victory for first-year interim head coach Chris Smithley.
 
A Thiel punt put the ball at the Waynesburg 22-yard-line with 13:29 left to play in the game. Waynesburg chewed up an impressive 10:07 of clock thanks to a 16-play drive, 15 of which were on the ground, to score the game's final points. Wilson's two-yard run to pay dirt closed up the scoring on the day with 3:15 left in the game.
 
Junior cornerback Justin Willkow produced one last highlight for the victors when he intercepted his first pass of the year on Thiel's last offensive play of the game. Appropriately, Waynesburg ran five more running plays, the first three of which came from freshman running back Jeremiah Doswell-Hardrick, to melt away the final seconds of the game.
 
Along with dominating the ground game (284 yards to 58), the Jackets possessed the football for 37:35. Waynesburg also converted seven-of-14 third down tries and piled up 22 first downs, while yielding eight to the Tomcats.
 
The Jacket defense, which gave up its fewest points in a game since week five of the 2014 season, was led by sophomore defensive back VaShon Graham, who posted a team-high seven tackles, six of which were solo stops. Junior defensive back Andrew Brncic added six stops, all of which were of the solo variety. Davis added five tackles, two of which were solo stops, to his two fumble recoveries.
 
Waynesburg will play its final home game of the season on Saturday, Nov. 4, when Saint Vincent comes to John F. Wiley Stadium for Senior Day. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.