WASHINGTON, Pa. – Sophomore wide receiver John Peduzzi (Hilton Head, S.C./Hilton Head Christian Academy) hauled in three touchdown receptions to help guide the Washington & Jefferson College football team to a 56-14 lead over visiting Thiel College in a Presidents' Athletic Conference matchup Saturday afternoon at Cameron Stadium.
The win W&J improves to 4-0 this season while Thiel falls to 1-3 overall.
The 56 points is the most by W&J in a single game this season. The win was the Presidents 17th consecutive triumph over the Tomcats in the head-to-head series.
The opening five minutes of the game was certainly eventful. The Tomcats were forced to punt but were able to regain possession of a muffed punt by the W&J return team. However, the W&J defense played takeaway two plays later when sophomore Bruno Fabrycki (New Salem, Pa./Albert Gallatin) intercepted a Tomcat pass.
W&J was unable to take advantage and was forced to punt. On a third-and-eight play of the ensuing Thiel possession, junior Mason Kasprack (South Park, Pa. / South Park) intercepted a pass to set W&J up at the Thiel 28-yard line. Three plays later, W&J was able to get on the scoreboard when junior quarterback Jacob Pugh (Jefferson Hills, Pa./Thomas Jefferson) connected with Peduzzi for a 29-yard touchdown. A successful PAT by Ricky Hunter (Freeport, Pa./Freeport) gave W&J a 7-0 lead at the 9:08 mark of the first.
Following another defensive stand, W&J took over at the Thiel 29-yard line following a blocked punt by sophomore Kobe Derosa (New Castle, Pa. / Laurel). W&J needed just four plays to reach the end zone. Pugh pushed the pile on the QB sneak for a one-yard touchdown run at the 6:10 mark. Hunter's PAT made it 14-0 Presidents.
W&J tacked on another touchdown early in the second quarter. Junior Zach Cernuto (Scottdale, Pa./Southmoreland) capped an eight-play, 50-yard drive with a one-yard run out of the wildcat formation. The PAT by Hunter pushed the lead to 21-0 at the 13:45 mark.
After moving backward on its next possession, the Presidents took over at their own 43-yard line. Three completions through the air helped the Red and Black move down the field for another touchdown in just 1:19 of game time. A 28-yard strike from Pugh to Peduzzi put the Presidents into the end zone. The point after by Hunter extended the lead to 28-0 in favor of W&J.
W&J tacked on one more touchdown before halftime. Pugh found Peduzzi for a third touchdown connection. The five-yard pass play made it 35-0 at the 5:58 mark. The touchdown is the eighth receiving score of the season for Peduzzi, who leads the PAC in the category.
Thiel was able to get on the board before halftime. An 11-play, 71-yard drive reached the end zone when Donny Pattison scored on a two-yard run at the 1:16 mark of the second quarter for the Tomcats.
W&J continued to pour it on in the second half. In the third quarter, senior running back Justin Huss (Derry, Pa./Derry) rushed for a 10-yard touchdown at the 11:48 mark while Derosa added a 14-yard touchdown reception from sophomore Kellan Stahl (Johnstown, Pa./Richland) with 8:04 remaining in the third. Junior running back Owen Petrisek (Ellsworth, Pa./Bentworth) found the end zone for a fourth time this season. The 11-yard run up the middle by Petrisek extended the W&J lead to 56-7 with 4:35 to play in the third.
The Tomcats added a touchdown early in the fourth when a one-yard run capped the scoring in the contest.
W&J finished with 23 first downs compared to just nine for Thiel. The Presidents collected 408 yards of offense while limiting the Tomcats to just 135. Thiel converted just one of 15 attempts on third down.
The two teams combined to commit 24 penalties for 170 yards.
Pugh finished 14-of-19 through the air for 189 yards. Pugh tossed three touchdowns and added another on the ground. Derosa was the leading rusher with 58 yards. W&J ran the ball 36 times for 156 yards in the game. Peduzzi hauled in five receptions (three touchdowns) for 96 yards. Rosati had a game-high six receptions for 66 yards.
W&J racked up five sacks defensively. Dawson Dietz (Allison Park, Pa./Hampton) and Avery Keith (Hartville, Ohio/Lake) recorded two apiece. James Dawodu (Upper Marlboro, Md./Largo) added the other sack, which came in the opening quarter.
Senior linebacker Keaton Hall (Dover, Ohio/Dover) recorded a team-high seven tackles for the Presidents. Fellow senior linebacker Tanner Volpatti (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) added six tackles, two of which went for loss.
W&J travels to Grove City for a conference showdown on Saturday, Sept. 30. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. at Robert E. Thorn Field in Mercer County.
Presidents move to 4-0 with 56-14 victory over Tomcats
/seasons/2023/boxscores/20230923_bziu.xml
2023
Thiel
14
Washington and Jefferson
56
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thiel (1-3) | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| Washington and Jefferson (4-0) | 14 | 21 | 21 | 0 | 56 |
Sep 23, 2023