The Case Western Reserve University football team put together another dominating all-around performance on Saturday in Greenville, Pennsylvania, defeating Thiel College 55-7 for the team's fourth-straight win.
The win was the fourth straight for the Spartans, who improved to 4-2-1 overall and to 4-1 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference. The Tomcats fell to 0-7 with a 0-5 conference mark.
Stats and Standouts
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CWRU outgained Thiel 402-233 in the game, including a 283-39 edge by the Spartan starters in the first half. CWRU's defense held Thiel to just 113 passing yards on Saturday.
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Junior quarterback Sam DeTillio completed seven of nine passes for 185 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 22 yards with an additional score, despite not seeing action over the final 30 minutes with the Spartans building a large lead by halftime.
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Sophomore defensive back Jack Kavcic recorded his team-leading third interception of the season and ran for a touchdown during the game.
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Sophomore running back Andy Kavcic scored a pair of touchdowns, running for one and catching another.
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Senior defensive lineman Joseph Swarm had a sack for the fifth consecutive game and now had a team-leading 5.5 sacks this season.
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Junior kicker Gabriel Petrozzi accounted for 10 points in the game, kicking a pair of field goals, including a career-long 50-yarder, and making all six extra-point attempts.
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First-year running back Joel Hancock led all CWRU players with 53 rushing yards.
First Quarter
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Swarm forced a turnover with a strip sack on Thiel's opening drive of the game, with sophomore defensive lineman Jack Tierney recovering the ball on the Tomcats' 10-yard line. Lopez scored two plays later on a six-yard run to give CWRU a 7-0 lead with 13:35 left in the period.
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CWRU's defense forced a three-and-out on Thiel's next possession and senior linebacker Daniel King blocked the ensuing punt, recovering it at the Thiel 10-yard line, and a 31-yard field goal by Petrozzi made it 10-0 with 9:54 to play in the first.
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Junior defensive back Charlie Morrison's first career interception on the next Thiel drive gave CWRU the ball back at its own 49-yard line. On the next play, DeTillio connected with junior wide receiver Liam O'Brien on a deep pass over the middle to extend the team's lead to 17-0 with 8:10 remaining in the frame.
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The Spartans' defense racked up its third turnover of the opening quarter on an interception by Jake Kavcic with 5:10 to go in the period, and Andy Kavcic pushed the lead to 24-0 with a five-yard scoring run with 2:35 on the clock.
Second Quarter
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An eight-yard touchdown run by DeTillio on the Spartans' first drive of the second quarter pushed the team's lead to 31-0 with 10:37 left in the half.
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Later in the period, a 42-yard pass from DeTillio to senior wide receiver Alec Angello set up a five-yard touchdown run by Jake Kavcic, putting CWRU in front 38-0 with 7:37 to go in the second.
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DeTillio capped off the first half with a 23-yard touchdown pass to Andy Kavcic to put CWRU ahead 45-0 going into halftime.
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The CWRU defense allowed a total of 39 yards to the Thiel offense in the first half of play.
Third Quarter
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Petrozzi added to CWRU's lead with a booming 50-yard field goal, as the Spartans led 48-0 with 6:10 left in the third.
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The Tomcats finally got on the board late in the third on a four-yard run from Deon Logan, and CWRU entered the final period leading 48-7.
Fourth Quarter
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Hancock ran for his second touchdown of the season, putting the Spartans ahead 55-7 with 2:10 left in the game on a 32-yard dash into the endzone.
Spartan Notes
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The Spartans improved to 15-9 all-time against Thiel, including a 7-5 record in games played in Greenville. CWRU has now won 12 consecutive games in the series, including all 10 games since rejoining the PAC as an affiliate member prior to the 2014 campaign.
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CWRU matched its season-high for points in a game with its 55-point output against Thiel.
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Saturday's game marked the third straight game that the Spartans have not allowed a point in the first half.
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Petrozzi's 50-yard field goal was the longest by a CWRU player since at least the 2007 season. It is tied for the seventh-longest field goal by a Division III player this season.
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With his touchdown run on Saturday, Lopez has now accounted for seven touchdowns in the team's last four games.
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Nine different CWRU players accounted for the team's nine receptions in Saturday's win.
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CWRU has outscored its opponents by an average score of 53.5-10-5 during its current four-game winning streak.
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The Spartans ran for 196 yards in the game as the team improved to 4-0 this season when rushing for 150 or more yards in a contest.
Up Next
The Spartans will be on the road again next weekend for a key matchup against Washington and Jefferson, which currently sits atop the PAC standings with a 5-0 conference record, one game ahead of CWRU. Kickoff from Washington, Pennsylvania, is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. on Saturday, November 1.