BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – Trailing the Geneva Golden Tornadoes 28-6 early in the second quarter, the Thiel Tomcats mounted a 22-point comeback to tie the contest in the third quarter. Unfortunately, the rest of the game belonged to the Tornadoes, who went on to defeat the Tomcats 49-28 at Reeves Field in Beaver Falls, Pa.
Geneva drew first blood in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) contest. After the Tomcats turned the ball over on their first play from scrimmage, the Tornadoes scored four plays later on a fourth-and-short play from the Thiel 5-yard line on a run by Rocco Colavecchia.
Thiel responded two series later when Josh Potter (Chipley, Fla./Chipley) ripped off a career-long 58-yard touchdown run around right end. The extra point was blocked and the Tornadoes continued to lead the game, 7-6.
Geneva went on to score three touchdowns over the next 15 minutes to take what seemed like a commanding 28-6 lead. Lemuel Fuller caught a 15-yard touchdown pass from Zack Hayward during Geneva's offensive burst. Hayward also scored on a 57-yard run while Colavecchia's 39-yard scamper gave Geneva a 28-6 lead with 10:24 left in the second quarter.
Rather than throw in the towel, the Tomcats clawed their way back into the game with 22 points of their own.
Jack Sindlinger (Linesville, Pa./Linesville) started to swing momentum back in Thiel's favor with 8:47 remaining before halftime when he pounced on a muffed punt in the Geneva end zone for a touchdown. The 2-point conversion run was unsuccessful, but the Tomcats were back in contention, trailing 28-12.
The Tomcats reached into their bag of tricks on the ensuing kickoff and utilized a surprise on side kick, which worked to perfect from the toe of Cody McClelland (Sarver, Pa./Freeport) to the hands of Walt Litwin (Linesville, Pa./Linesville), who gained possession along the far side line at the Geneva 35-yard line.
The Tomcats' drive stalled on their freebie possession, but Jon Fennick (New Castle, Pa./Neshannock ) booted a 28-yard field goal to cut the deficit down to 28-15.
Geneva turned the ball over again with 63 seconds left in the first half, setting up the Tomcats' third touchdown of the game. Two plays after the fumble, Andrew Smith(Williamsfield, Ohio/Pymatuning Valley) threw a 25-yard touchdown strike to Tim Walker (Beachwood, Ohio/Warrensville Heights). Fennick made the extra point, and the Tomcats went into the locker room at the half trailing by just six points, 28-22.
Geneva turned the football over on its first play from scrimmage in the third quarter, and the Tomcats scored the equalizer two plays later when Smith found Berend Grube(Venetia, Pa./Peters Twp.) for a 12-yard touchdown pass. The extra point was no good, but the Tomcats came back from a 22-point deficit to force a 28-all tie.
Unfortunately for the Tomcats, the rest of the game belonged to the Golden Tornadoes, who went on to score 21 unanswered points for the 49-28 win.
Both teams committed three turnovers in the game. Geneva turned the ball over on three fumbles while Thiel threw three interceptions.
Potter ran for a game-high 121 yards on 14 carries while Hayward carried nine times for 100 yards.
Hayward completed 26 of 45 passes for 248 yards. He threw two touchdowns, including an 81-yarder to Fuller in the third quarter. Fuller caught 10 passes, two of which were for touchdowns, for 137 yards.
Smith completed 7-of-27 passes for 64 yards. He threw two touchdown passes and also ran for 28 yards on eight carries.
Sindlinger and Wes Schmidt (Kittanning, Pa./Kittanning) led Thiel on defense with 12 tackles apiece. John Onufer led the Golden Tornadoes with 14 tackles while Tim Martin came up with two interceptions.
The Tomcats (0-3, 0-1 PAC) will continue conference play Saturday when they travel to Washington, Pa., to take on the Presidents. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m.
22-point rally not enough for Tomcats
/seasons/2013/boxscores/20130921_21tc.xml
2013
Thiel
28
Geneva
49
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thiel (0-3) | 6 | 16 | 6 | 0 | 28 |
| Geneva (3-0) | 14 | 14 | 14 | 7 | 49 |
Sep 21, 2013