NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. -- For the second consecutive week, Grove City College sophomore quarterback Josh Ehst (Douglassville, Pa./Daniel Boone) scored on a quarterback sneak as time expired as the Wolverines earned a 43-41 road win Saturday afternoon over Westminster on the Titans' Homecoming at Memorial Field.
Two plays earlier, Ehst had thrown an interception at the goal line on fourth down, giving the ball back to Westminster with eight seconds remaining. An excessive celebration penalty moved the ball from the 2 to the 1. Westminster fumbled the snap, however, and sophomore cornerback Dan Melville (Hampstead, Md./Manchester Valley) recovered the loose ball at the Westminster 1 with four seconds left.
Ehst then followed center Geoff Matthews (Allison Park, Pa./Deer Lakes) into the end zone for the game-winning score. Last week, Ehst scored on a quarterback sneak in overtime to defeat Carnegie Mellon, 29-26.
Grove City finished the game with 488 total offensive yards. Ehst completed 10 of 21 passes for 265 yards while junior wide receiver Cody Gustafson (Shippensburg, Pa./Shippensburg) set a single-game Grove City record with 211 receiving yards on his six receptions. Tom Flenner held the previous mark of 203, set against Mercyhurst in 1995.
Gustafson also became Grove City's career leader in receiving yards in the win. He now has 2,584 yards, passing Rick Sems for first place. Sems accumulated 2,550 receiving yards from 1989 to 1992.
Senior running back Wesley Schools (Port Jervis, N.Y./Port Jervis) ran for 191 yards and four touchdowns on 38 carries. He scored twice in the first nine minutes, giving Grove City an early 14-0 lead.
Schools opened the scoring with 13:03 left in the first quarter on a 20-yard touchdown run. Senior cornerback Jacob Ross (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional) set up the Wolverines at the Westminster 31 when he intercepted Cole Konieczka's pass on the second play of the game. Schools then pushed the lead to 14-0 with a 12-yard run at the 6:05 mark.
Westminster cut the lead to 14-7 on Dwayne Brown's eight-yard touchdown catch but Grove City quickly answered. Ehst fired an 18-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Cameron Drake (Monaca, Pa./Central Valley), pushing the lead to 20-7. A 38-yard strike to Gustafson put the Wolverines in the red zone.
Westminster pulled to within 20-14 on Tyler Greene's two-yard touchdown run and the Titans then drove to the Grove City 23 in the final minute of the half. However, freshman linebacker Curtis Freyermuth (Meadville, Pa./Cochranton) intercepted Konieczka at the 20 with 49 seconds left in the half.
On Grove CIty's first play of the drive, Ehst threw a 74-yard bomb to Gustafson, who reached the Westminster 2. Schools bulled into the end zone on the next play, giving Grove City a 27-14 lead at halftime.
Sophomore kicker Nick Morrow (Moon Township, Pa./Moon) drilled a 26-yard field goal with 11:20 left in the third quarter, extending the lead to 30-14. Drake blocked a Westminster punt to give Grove City favorable field position.
Junior defensive end R.J. Debo (New Brighton, Pa./New Brighton) and sophomore linebacker Parker Kilgore (Glenshaw, Pa./Shaler) both recorded 10 tackles for the Wolverines. Senior linebacker Luke Salerno (Cowansville, Pa./Karns City) posted a sack and a forced fumble.
Grove CIty had 25 first downs and held a 30:07-29:53 edge in time of possession. Westminster had 485 yards and 28 first downs. Greene led Westminster with 91 rushing yards on 20 carries. Konieczka completed 19 of 26 passes for 267 yards.
Drake added three catches for 48 yards for Grove City (4-2, 3-2). Sophomore running back Zach Trusky (Carnegie, Pa./Bishop Canevin) added 31 rushing yards on five carries.
It's the second straight year that Grove City has defeated Westminster in the final moments. Last year, Gustafson caught a two-yard touchdown pass from Ehst with seven seconds left to give the Wolverines a 36-33 Homecoming win.
Grove City will visit Waynesburg next Saturday in conference play. Kickoff will be 1:30 p.m. at Wiley Stadium.
MIRACLE AT MEMORIAL FIELD
/seasons/2019/boxscores/20191012_kk28.xml
2019
Grove City
43
Westminster (Pa.)
41
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grove City (4-2) | 14 | 13 | 3 | 13 | 43 |
| Westminster (Pa.) (4-2) | 7 | 7 | 13 | 14 | 41 |
Oct 12, 2019