BOX SCORE
PHOTO GALLERY
Waynesburg University scored 20 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to come from behind to beat the Bearcats 34-28 on Senior Day at Chuck Noll Field.
The Bearcats out-gained the Yellow Jackets 451-340 for the game, but saw Waynesburg turn a 21-14 deficit into a 34-21 lead with three touchdowns in a six minute span in the game's final quarter.
Saint Vincent receiver Chace Ginyard set a school record with 160 yards, coming on four catches, with two touchdowns, while running back Mike Kale also entered the record books, gaining a school mark 133 yards on 24 carries with a touchdown. For the second straight week, SVC quarterback Aaron Smetanka amassed 300 passing yards, completing 18 of 31 passes for 303 yards and two touchdowns.
Waynesburg got on the board first, scoring on its first two possessions of the game. Just three minutes into the opening stanza, Bertrand Ngampa capped off a seven-play, 66-yard drive with a 35-yard touchdown run, before Nate Lanehart made the score 14-0 with a three-yard touchdown run with five minutes left in the quarter.
The Bearcats then ended the first quarter driving, with Smetanka completing six passes for 61 yards, with the big gainer a 25-yarder to Sheldon Loughner, to set up first and goal on the six yardline. On the second play of the second quarter, Kale bowled in from one yard out, and Aaron Jones' extra point pulled SVC to within 14-7 with 14:13 left in the second quarter.
After the teams traded three scoreless possessions, Smetanka and the SVC offense went back to work, taking advantage of a Waynesburg personal foul to set up first down on the Waynesburg 19. On the next play, Smetanka hit Ginyard for his first score of the day, with Jones' kick tying the game at 14 with 6:27 left in the half.
The Waynesburg offense then looked to close out the half with a long scoring drive, with quarterback Brad Dawson completing five passes for 34 yards to set up first-and-goal on the SVC 9. After two incomplete passes, Ngampa rushed the ball to just inside the one-yard line, and the 'Jackets went for it on fourth-and-goal. The SVC defense came up big, with defensive end John Jackson sacking Dawson for an 18-yard loss to force the turnover on downs and end the half.
The third quarter began as a defensive struggle, with Armando Fortunato intercepting Dawson on the 'Jackets first drive, before Waynesburg forced a three-and-out on the Bearcats' ensuing trip. The SVC punt by Josh Pomilio pinned the 'Jackets inside their own 15-yardline, but a trio of Dawson passes quickly advanced the ball to the SVC 49. The 'Jackets decided to go for broke, with Dawson unleashing a bomb into the end zone, but SVC came up with its second interception of the quarter, as Bryan Santos made an over-the-shoulder grab in the end zone for the touchback.
Saint Vincent quickly took advantage of the Waynesburg miscue, with Smetanka completing a pair of passes to Tom Quirin for 25 yards that took the ball to the SVC 48, before Rob Minjock made a diving grab on the sideline to advance the ball to the Waynesburg 31. The combination of Smetanka and Ginyard struck again, as the pair hooked up for a touchdown strike on the next play. The Jones' extra point put the Bearcats in front 21-14 with 4:18 left in the quarter.
Waynesburg would end the third quarter driving, with Dawson completing eight consecutive passes for 66 yards, finishing the quarter with a first-down pass to Kyle Kyper at the SVC 13. On the third play of the fourth quarter, Dominic Moore bowled into the end zone from one yard out, tying the score with 14:23 left in regulation.
On the Bearcats' second series of the quarter, Waynesburg quickly stole the game's momentum, as Bryan Gary intercepted a tipped pass at the 20-yardline and raced untouched down the sideline for the touchdown that would put the 'Jackets in front 28-21 with 10:52 left to play.
Waynesburg added onto its lead on its next possession, taking advantage of a short Bearcat punt and an SVC personal foul to set up a first-and-goal on the 10. Ngampa advanced the ball to the three, before Lanehart scored his second touchdown of the day. The extra point attempt failed, and Waynesburg led 34-21 with 7:00 left to play.
Brandon Hamilton then returned the kickoff 32 yards to the SVC 34, and two plays later, Smetanka and Ginyard hooked up yet again, this time for 51-yards, to take the ball inside the Waynesburg 5. After a Waynesburg penalty moved the ball three more yards, Smetanka completed the drive by diving into the end zone for the keeper. Jones' extra point was good, and SVC trailed just 34-28 with 5:06 left to play.
The Smetanka run ended up being the final points of the day for either side, as the Bearcats turned the ball over on downs on their final possession with 1:40 left. Waynesburg then ran out the clock, and escaped Latrobe with the comeback win.
Dawson led the Waynesburg offense by completing 25 of 40 passes for 254 yards. Adam Moses was the quarterback's favorite target, hauling in a game-high nine catches for 98 yards. On the ground, Ngampa finished with 96 yards on 15 carries, but as a team, SVC limited the 'Jackets to just 86 rushing yards, 70 below their season average.
Defensively, linebacker Anthony Johnson finished with a game-high 10 tackles for SVC, including 2.0 tackles for loss and a sack. Alex Rowan and Fortunato each made nine stops, with Rowan tallying a sack and Fortunato an interception.
Alex Menton led the Waynesburg defense with nine tackles, including 0.5 sacks and a forced fumble, while Bryan Gary made seven tackles in addition to his interception return.
The loss drops the Bearcats' to 2-6 overall, and 2-3 in Presidents' Athletic Conference play, while Waynesburg improves to 6-2/4-1. Saint Vincent returns to action next Saturday, traveling to PAC foe Westminster for a 1:00pm kickoff.
