CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Missed opportunities by the Washington & Jefferson College football team aided Case Western Reserve in a 14-10 defeat of the Presidents in the Presidents' Athletic Conference opener Saturday evening at DiSanto Field in Cleveland.
The W&J defense played well but CWRU scored a pair of touchdowns on lengthy pass plays to secure the victory. A 59-yard touchdown strike from CWRU quarterback Drew Saxton to Ethan Dahlem gave the hosts the lead for good with 4:21 to play.
Neither team was able to get much going offensively in the first half. The W&J defense made a stop and blocked a 26-yard field goal to keep the game scoreless with 5:44 remaining in the opening quarter. The unit came through again on the next CWRU possession. Faced with a fourth-and-two at the W&J 21, Drew Ehrlich (Annapolis, Md./The Gilman School) stuffed the Spartans run attempt for no gain.
W&J punted five times, turned the ball over on downs once and managed just three first downs in the first half. The Spartans marched 80 yards on nine plays to take a 7-0 lead on a 42-yard touchdown pass by Saxton to Drew Coyne with just 13 seconds left in the first half.
Defense remained the story in the third quarter, as the two teams combined for six more punts (three apiece).
W&J took advantage of a break early in the fourth quarter. Tanner Volpatti (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) pounced on a muffed punt by Dahlem that set W&J at the CWRU 17-yard line. Colton Jones (Louisville, Ohio/Louisville) connected with John Peduzzi (Hilton Head, S.C./Hilton Head Christian Academy) for an 11-yard touchdown pass on a 4th and 4 play. The point after by Deven Wyandt (Altoona, Pa./Bishop Guilfoyle) evened the score at 7-7 with 12:39 to play.
The Presidents forced a quick CWRU punt and took over at its own 13-yard line with 12:30 to play. Jones moved the ball up the field and into Spartan territory with four straight pass completions, three of which going to Peduzzi. Then two plays later, Justin Huss (Derry, Pa./Derry) burst into the open field and down the sideline for a 43-yard run that advanced the ball to the CWRU two-yard line. A touchdown saving tackle by Nate Cikalo proved pivotal as the Presidents were unable to finish the drive with a touchdown. W&J lost yardage on two of the next three plays and settled for a Wyandt field goal, which gave the Presidents its first lead at 10-7, with 5:25 to play.
The lead was short-lived as Case responded right back. Three plays later, Saxton hit Dahlem for the eventual game-winning score. Jones did his best to put W&J in position to score again. He connected with Anthony Rosati (Chardon, Ohio / Perry) for nine yards on a fourth-and-five play at W&J's own 30-yard line. A 25-yard catch and run by Huss on a screen play moved W&J to the CWRU eight-yard line. However, just like the previous possession, the Presidents went backwards. W&J lost yards on consecutive plays and then had two incompletions into the end zone that resulted in a turnover on downs.
W&J was poised to get one more shot after forcing a three and out defensively. However, a muffed punt near midfield was recovered by CWRU. The Spartans ran out the clock and sealed the victory.
The Presidents finished the game 0-for-14 on third down. The Spartans were 6-for-17 at converting third down attempts. W&J finished with 251 yards of total offense. They had just 24 yards on 24 attempts on the ground.
Jones turned in a gutsy performance, completing 24-of-41 passes for 227 yards and a touchdown. He did not commit a turnover but was under duress throughout the night and was sacked seven times. Rosati finished with a career-high 103 receiving yards on eight catches. Peduzzi had seven catches for 63 yards and the lone W&J touchdown.
Defensively, Volpatti and Dawson Dietz (Allison Park, Pa./Hampton) finished with a game-high nine tackles each. Dietz continued a strong sophomore season with 2.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, a quarterback hurry and a pass breakup in the loss. Tyler Sabo (Aliquippa, Pa./Hopewell) and Justin Johns (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional) had eight stops apiece.
Saxton finished with 297 passing yards on 22 completions in 32 attempts. Dahlem had a game-high 108 receiving yards.
W&J (0-1 PAC, 2-1 overall) returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 24 against Bethany. W&J will recognize its 2022 Athletics Hall of Fame class at halftime. The game is scheduled for 6 p.m. kickoff at Cameron Stadium.
Late touchdown pass helps Case Western Reserve down W&J, 14-10
/seasons/2022/boxscores/20220917_y9cn.xml
2022
Washington and Jefferson
10
Case Western Reserve
14
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington and Jefferson (2-1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 10 |
| Case Western Reserve (2-1) | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
Sep 17, 2022