WAYNESBURG, Pa. – A Waynesburg running attack that chewed up 210 yards was the spark for the Yellow Jackets to take down the Bethany College football team Saturday by a 23-7 margin in a PAC match-up at Wiley Stadium.
The defeat evens the Bison’s record at 2-2 overall and they fall to 1-2 in the PAC. Waynesburg remains unbeaten in the league at 3-0 and stand at 3-1 overall.
Waynesburg took the opening kickoff and drove to the BC 21 before facing a fourth-and-seven. A pass interference call on Bethany gave the home team a first down and after converting another fourth down, Dominic Moore punched in from a yard away for a 6-0 Waynesburg lead after the extra point was blocked.
The Bison tried to answer back, but stalled out at the Yellow Jacket 15 and missed a 32-yard field goal. Waynesburg came right back, marching 80 yards in 10 plays, with the final strike being a 38-yard touchdown pass from Josh Graham to Pat Depizzo that took the spread to 13-0.
The Yellow Jacket ground game produced the third score of the half, as Waynesburg backs gained 62 out of 77 yards on a drive that ended with a 12-yard scoring run by Bertrand Ngampa to make it 20-0. The Bison had a final chance to get points on the board before halftime, but after reaching the Waynesburg eight, had a penalty and sack take them backwards and the half ended with an incomplete pass on fourth and goal from the 18.
Bethany’s offense clicked on the first drive of the second half. Three plays after a 23-yard pass to junior WR Ed Holmes (Virginia Beach, Va./Landstown), sophomore QB Matt Grimard (Lowell, Mass./Dracut) fired a 33-yard touchdown toss to junior WR Johnathan Foster (Cumberland, Md./Fort Hill) and BC had trimmed the deficit to 20-7.
The final points of the day came on the Yellow Jackets’ next possession. Using 13 plays to gain 59 yards, Waynesburg was stopped at the Bison six and settled for a 23-yard field goal from Chris Marini to push their lead to 23-7.
The rest of the game was a battle of frustration for Bethany, as on its final four drives, the Green and White moved deep inside Waynesburg territory but came away with zero points. Two drives ended on failed fourth down attempts, one was stopped with a fumble and another ended with a missed field goal. On the day, the Bison outgained the Yellow Jackets 348-313, but did not score in five trips to the red zone.
The Bison ground game was limited to just 108 yards in the game, with senior Eric Walker (New Brighton, Pa.) gaining a team-best 49. Grimard threw for 240 yards, but hit on only 16-of-37 attempts. His top target was Holmes, who snared five balls for 115 yards.
The Bethany defense was paced by a pair of linemen, as senior DE Kasib Taalib-Din (New York, N.Y./Central Park East) and junior DT Blake DeBord (Martinsburg, W.Va.) made eight tackles apiece, including one for loss.
Next week has the Bison hosting Westminster for the school’s Homecoming game. Kickoff at Bison Stadium is scheduled for 2 p.m.
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