WASHINGTON, Pa. – Washington & Jefferson converted three Thiel turnovers into two touchdowns Saturday en route to a 32-19 Presidents' Athletic Conference victory at Cameron Stadium in Washington, Pa.
The Tomcats suffered the loss despite winning multiple statistical categories, including: first downs (19-18), time of possession (35:52-24:08), total offensive yards (409-321) and passing yards (269-169).
After forcing the Tomcats three-and-out on the first possession of the game, the Presidents took an early 3-0 lead on a 32-yard field goal by Eric Eberle, which capped off a 10-play, 45-yard drive.
The Tomcats threw an interception on their next possession, which W&J cornerback Sam Comly returned 29 yards to the Thiel 2-yard line. Two plays later Dion Wiegand scored a touchdown on a 1-yard run. Eberle added the extra point and the Tomcats were in a 10-0 hole midway through the first quarter.
The Tomcats found their offensive groove over the remainder of the first half and cut the Presidents' lead to 10-6 with 2:41 remaining before halftime when Josh Potter(Chipley, Fla./Chipley) threw a halfback pass on a fourth-and-1 play from the W&J 30-yard line to Bill Frizzi (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Catholic), who climbed the ladder to make the grab in the end zone.
The Presidents drove down to the Tomcats' 4-yard line on their ensuing possession and took a 13-6 lead into the locker room when Eberle kicked a 21-yard field goal on the final play of the first half.
W&J extended its lead to 19-6 on the opening possession of the first half when freshman quarterback Pete Coughlin, who started in place of injured Matt Bliss, connected with Alex Baroffio on a 28-yard touchdown pass.
The Tomcats picked up a pair of first downs on their next possession but turned the ball over on downs at the Presidents' 28-yard line when Andrew Smith (Williamsfield, Ohio/Pymatuning Valley)'s fourth down pass intended for Frizzi fell incomplete.
Coughlin scored on a 7-yard touchdown run on W&J's next possession, capping off a 5-play drive that gave his team a 25-6 lead.
Thiel responded with one of its best drives of the game, an 8-play, 81-yard effort that consumed nearly five minutes of clock and ended with a Smith 10-yard touchdown pass to freshman running back Josh Wannamaker (Derry, Pa./Derry). The extra point was no good, but Wannamaker's first career receiving touchdown cut W&J's lead to 13 points with 3:49 remaining in the third quarter.
After forcing a W&J punt, Thiel's offense went back to work. Potter carried on four straight plays, picking up 22 yards to the W&J 44-yard line, but the Tomcats fumbled on third-and-2 and Shane Smith scooped up the fumble and advanced it to the Thiel 3-yard line. Wiegand scored a TD two plays later on a 2-yard run to give the Presidents a 32-12 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Potter closed out scoring on a 10-yard touchdown run with 5:11 remaining in regulation to conclude an 8-play, 97-yard drive that consumed 5:11. Jon Fennick (New Castle, Pa./Neshannock ) added the extra point, but the Presidents kept the Tomcats from scoring the rest of the way.
Potter led the Tomcats on the ground with 93 yards on 18 carries. He ran for a touchdown and threw for a touchdown. Wiegand ran for 99 yards and two touchdowns on 21 totes.
Coughlin completed 16-of-23 passes for 169 yards. He threw a touchdown pass and ran for a touchdown. Smith completed 20-of-39 passes for 229 yards. He threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Wannamaker.
Baroffio led W&J with seven receptions for 104 yards. Frizzi and Berend Grube (Venetia, Pa./Peters Twp.) each caught four passes for Thiel.
Linebacker Wes Schmidt (Kittanning, Pa./Kittanning) led Thiel with 14 tackles, one of which was for a loss of yards, while linebacker Tom Thorpe (Charleroi, Pa./Charleroi)made 10 tackles and recorded a sack.
The Tomcats (0-4, 0-2 PAC) will travel to Waynesburg, Pa. next Saturday (Oct. 5) to take on the Waynesburg Yellow Jackets. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. The following Saturday (Oct. 12) is Homecoming at Thiel College with the Tomcats hosting the Saint Vincent Bearcats at Alumni Stadium at 3 p.m.
Turnovers costly in Thiel's loss to W&J
/seasons/2013/boxscores/20130928_5jlj.xml
2013
Thiel
19
Washington and Jefferson
32
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thiel (0-4) | 0 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 19 |
| Washington and Jefferson (3-1) | 10 | 3 | 12 | 7 | 32 |
Sep 28, 2013