BETHANY, W.Va. (Sept. 15) – The Waynesburg University football team hit the road for a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) matchup at Bethany on Saturday night. The Yellow Jackets scored first, but the Bison answered with 16-straight points en route to a 22-13 win in front of their home crowd.
 
Saturday marked the third-straight game that the Jackets (0-3, 0-2) have opened the scoring against an opponent. Waynesburg did so on its first offensive possession. The Jacket defense set up the scoring drive by forcing a three-and-out on Bethany's (2-1, 2-0) opening drive.
 
Senior quarterback Jake Dougherty made his first start of the season and looked sharp on his initial trip to the field. He hit all three of his pass attempts for 25 yards. With his team facing third-and-two at the Bison 46, Dougherty broke free for a 46-yard touchdown run 4:10 into the contest. It was his team-leading fourth scoring play on the ground this year. Freshman Garrett Horne tacked on the extra point to give his team an early 7-0 advantage.
 
Two possessions later, Bethany tied the game after a short Waynesburg punt gave the home team the ball at the Jacket 39. One play later, the score was knotted up at 7-7 midway through the first.
 
The score stayed tied throughout the remainder of the quarter. The visiting team was able to work the ball to the Bethany 13, which was just one yard shy of a first down. Facing a fourth-and-one, Horne was brought out to attempt a go-ahead 30-yard field goal. Unfortunately for Waynesburg, the kick was blocked.
 
Bethany eventually regained the lead with 5:36 left to play in the half on a touchdown-producing drive that spanned 68 yards in five plays. The home team extended its lead to 16-7 thanks to a field goal as the first half expired.
 
After neither team was able to score in the third quarter, the Waynesburg defense pulled the Orange and Black back into the contest when junior safety VaShon Graham intercepted a pass and raced 77 yards for the score. A missed extra point kept the Jackets in a three-point hole (16-13) midway through the final quarter.
 
Unfortunately, Bethany needed just five plays to go 85 yards on the ensuing possession for the game's final score. The Yellow Jackets got the ball back with 4:40 remaining in the contest. Waynesburg advanced to the Bison 39-yard-line, but a pair of sacks played a big role in the Orange and Black turning the ball over on downs.
 
Bethany closed out the win by running out the final 1:55 of the night.
 
The Jacket offense was led by junior running back Chad Walker, who rushed for 72 yards on 15 carries.
 
Dougherty and Perone, who played one half each, combined to go 16-of-28 for 140 yards. Junior Nick Moretti pulled in a game-high eight catches for 45 yards.
 
Graham's interception highlighted a solid night for the junior. He added eight tackles to his game, five of which were solo stops. Junior Tyler Smith led Waynesburg with nine total tackles, seven of which were solo stops.
 
Senior all-PAC cornerback Justin Willkow made his season debut after suffering a preseason injury and broke up a pair of passes.
 
For a third-straight game, Waynesburg won the time of possession battle by holding onto the ball for 30:54.
 
The Jackets return home on Saturday, Sept. 22, to host Geneva in another PAC matchup. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.