GREENVILLE, Pa. (Sept. 30) – The Waynesburg University football team traveled north to Thiel on Saturday looking for its first win of the 2023 season. Victory was within the Yellow Jackets' grasp as the fourth quarter wore on to its conclusion, but a crucial penalty led to the Tomcats scoring the go-ahead points, and a devastating turnover sealed a 15-14 win for the Tomcats.
After a scoreless first quarter, Thiel (2-3, 2-3) posted the game's first points on a field goal 4:42 into the second quarter. With the Waynesburg (0-5, 0-5) offense struggling, it was the defense that got the Orange and Black on the board. Junior
Brandon Tyson (Upper Marlboro, Md. / Frederick Douglass) intercepted his second pass of the season and ran it back 41 yards for the game's first touchdown. After sophomore
Ricco Sastoque (Concord, N.C. / Northwest Cabbarus) converted the extra point, Waynesburg held a 7-3 edge, which was also the score at halftime.
The lead last just 48 seconds into the third quarter, as a long touchdown run put the home team back ahead at 9-7. The Jacket offense finally got rolling later in the period when sophomore running back
Zayne Cawley (Huntingtown, Md. / Huntingtown) broke off a 63-yard touchdown run with 3:33 showing on the third quarter clock. Another Sastoque extra point put the Jackets back ahead by the score of 14-9.
Waynesburg maintained its five-point lead for nearly a full quarter before the Tomcats broke the plain of the endzone with just over two minutes left to play. The 16-play marathon that spanned 80 yards left the visitors with just 2:08 of game time to pull out a victory.
The Jackets pushed the line of scrimmage to the Thiel 38 and looked poised to have a shot at a game-deciding field goal try or better. Unfortunately, a fumble that was pounced upon by the Tomcats ultimately closed out the win for the host team.
Cawley rushed for a team-high 103 yards on 15 carries, while sophomore
Adrian Letta (East Rochester, N.Y. / East Rochester) pulled in a game-high eight catches for a contest-beset 53 yards.
On defense, senior
Jaquaivis Valle-Smith (Orlando, Fla. / Winter Park) piled up a game-high 13 tackles, nine of which were solo stops. Sophomore
Jemuel Cypress (Seat Pleasant, Md. / Charles Herbert Flowers) contributed 10 tackles, while freshman
Quilik Wooten (Capitol Heights, Md. / Charles Herbert Flowers) posted nine total stops, 2.0 of which were for loss.
With its bye week approaching, Waynesburg has an extra week to prepare for its game against Saint Vincent on Saturday, Oct. 14, when it will celebrate Alumni Day at John F. Wiley Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
