|
| Saturday's game at Cortland will be the 49th career appearance for Grove City guard Vinny LePre. Grove City athletics photo by John Hake |
By Joe Sager
D3sports.com
The bricks keep piling up for Grove City.
First 11-0 season in program history. First NCAA Division III playoff appearance. First D-III playoff victory.
The No. 18 Wolverines’ thrilling-come-from-behind 21-20 victory at No. 9 Susquehanna kept the record-setting season going for the program.
Grove City’s first tournament foray was anything but easy, though. The team trailed for a majority of the contest until Logan Pfeuffer found Ryan Lenhart over the middle for a 13-yard touchdown on fourth down with seven seconds remaining to knot the game at 20-all. Caleb Kuechly’s PAT gave the guests their first lead.
“When I saw that catch, I dropped to a knee and instantly thanked God,” Grove City guard Vinny LePre said. “No matter the outcome of the game, I have to thank my lord, Jesus Christ, for everything. It was just a really special moment for us, especially during that last timeout when we were all in a huddle. There were 10 seconds on the clock and we knew that, if we didn’t score there, we were losing. I think the calmness among the team was really special. Everyone was super collected. There was no panic at all in the huddle. I think that really makes it special. All the things we preach within our program showed at the end.”
Pressure didn’t bother the Wolverines on that last drive as they cashed in on a pair of fourth downs on the game-winning drive.
“I couldn’t have written a better script for that game,” Grove City safety Dominic Magliocco said. “The biggest thing with us is there was no flinching with our team. Nobody was worried on the sidelines. We knew what we had to do and we ended up getting it done at the end. I was just happy we were able to punch it in there.”
It’s yet another signature win for a program that endured some lows in the past decade with a 33-game losing streak at one point. When Andrew DiDonato took over as head coach in 2016, he instilled a “brick by brick” philosophy for the Wolverines. The team snapped its skid in DiDonato’s second year at the helm in 2017 and the bricks have piled up ever since, culminating in the squad’s first Presidents’ Athletic Conference championship since 1998 and a postseason run that leads to No. 11 Cortland on Saturday.
“It’s a blessing to be in the situation we are in today,” Magliocco said. “We’ve never played them and they’ve never played us. I am excited to dive into practice to get ready for them.”
Even though this is uncharted territory for Grove City, the team knows it can’t worry about anything other than being prepared for the upcoming opponent on its schedule. It’s a philosophy the group has followed all season.
“We’re taking it week by week and being who we are. We know the kind of football team we are. We are going to be prepare just like we’ve done the last 11 weeks,” LePre said. “With a coach like Coach DiDonato and the entire staff, it’s so easy to buy into the program and what they preach. It’s a team. We love being a part of this team. It’s a group of guys all focused on one vision, and we’ll all give it our all. Since Day 1 of me being here, that’s how it’s been. That senior class my freshman year, they were 0-10 their first year. But, the leadership and examples they set, it’s been special and it’s carried over. Every single guy is locked in every day. We’re focused on the present and being where our feet are.”
While DiDonato and the coaches have worked to transform the program into a force, they’ve carried those efforts off the field, too, in impacting their players’ lives. The result is a selfless group that cares more about team success than anything else.
“With us, we don’t care who does what. There are no individuals on the team out there playing for themselves. We’re all out there playing for the man next to us,” Magliocco said. “This team is really close and it’s a special group.”
“I love this team,” LePre added. “I’d be just as happy being part of this group if we weren’t in this situation. It’s awesome to be able to accomplish what we have, but it’s about more than football. We have something special here. Sure, I am super proud to be part of a championship team, but I think we’d all be just as joyful if the circumstances didn’t go our way this season.”
It’s that kind of perspective and looseness that makes the Wolverines a tough out, especially in the playoffs.
“One of the big things we were saying about last week is that we were out there playing with house money. Nobody was really worried about anything,” Magliocco said. “Coming into this year, my main goal was to win that PAC championship. It means so much for Coach DiDonato from breaking that losing streak and getting us back to the point where we are, competing on a national stage. I am really happy for him because he’s put so much work into getting the program to where we are today.
“Being there and listening to everything he is telling us has really changed my life in so many ways,” he continued. “No matter what circumstances come to us, we know that – as long as we are in our vision – we can take on anything that comes at us.”
On the field, DiDonato’s philosophy has turned Grove City into a balanced offensive threat. The Wolverines average 197.5 yards rushing per game and 183.3 yards through the air. The team’s defense allows 248.5 yards per game and yields 13.8 points per outing. That recipe has extended the team’s season past Thanksgiving.
“In high school, I never got to win a championship. So, at this time throughout my life, I was getting ready to play in a Turkey Bowl game with my buddies,” Magliocco said. “Being able to play another week with all the guys here is really special. I am thankful just being able to be around this team and coaching staff for another week. This is one of the closest teams I’ve ever been a part of. It’s been a blast.”
“It is an awesome experience to still be playing at this time of year. Not everyone gets a chance to do it,” LePre added. “I don’t think I’ve ever played a game in the second week of playoffs before in my life. It’s cool. It’s almost like camp all over again because it’s just you and the guys here on campus. It’s a cool experience. We hope to keep it going, too.”