LATROBE, Pa. (Sept. 3) – The Saint Vincent football team saw a pair of program records broken in its 2022 season opener, but a late touchdown by visiting Stevenson lifted the Mustangs to a 25-21 victory in a back-and-forth non-conference battle at a steamy Chuck Noll Field.
Senior quarterback Brady Walker became Saint Vincent's all-time leader in pass completions, while junior Molayo Irefin established a school mark with an 85-yard punt return touchdown to give SVC a 21-19 lead with 7 minutes left in regulation, but the Mustangs scored less than three minutes later to earn the victory.
The Saint Vincent defense limited Stevenson to just 261 yards of total offense, but the Bearcats were hampered by a pair of turnovers and eight penalties.
Along with his record-setting punt return, Irefin hauled in a team-high 10 catches for 79 yards, while D.J. Gray Jr. rushed for 54 yards on 14 attempts and a touchdown in his Bearcat debut. Walker completed 21 of 35 passes for 190 yards, with one touchdown and one interception, while Ryan Brown paced the SVC defense with 8 tackles, including one for loss, and Jaden Edmonds 6 stops with a sack.
Stevenson wasted little time in gaining the lead, capping off a nine-play, 60-yard drive with a five-yard Brandon Walker plunge to go in front 7-0 just 5:08 into the opening quarter.
Saint Vincent answered right back with a scoring drive of its own. Walker began the drive with a 28-yard pass to Jeffrey Downs II and a 12-yard completion to Irefin, before Gray's 20-yard run set up first down on the Stevenson 14-yard line. After a 7-yard completion to Irefin set up first-and-goal at the 7, the Bearcats would go to the ground, with Gray plunging in from one yard out on fourth-and-goal to tie the game at 7 with 4:41 left in the quarter.
The Bearcat defense forced a three-and-out on Stevenson's ensuing drive, thanks to a tackle in the backfield from Dwight Collins Jr. and a sack from Jaden Edmonds, but SVC gave the ball right back following the punt, with an interception giving the Mustangs the ball on the SVC 30-yard line with less than a minute left in the quarter. On the opening play of the second stanza, the Mustangs' Maurice Hammond scored on a 12-yard run. The extra point attempt was no good, and the Bearcats trailed 13-7 with 14:54 left in the quarter.
The remainder of the third quarter was scoreless, with the Bearcats longest drive of the frame ending in a missed field goal, and the score would remain 13-7 at the intermission.
The Bearcats committed their second miscue of the afternoon on the opening kickoff of the third quarter, with Stevenson recovering a fumble on the SVC 17. The Mustangs promptly took advantage, with Matt Goetz completing a 4-yard touchdown pass to Steve Smothers to up the lead to 19-7 after another missed extra point.
Saint Vincent countered with its longest drive of the afternoon to cut into the deficit. Taking over at their own 24, the Bearcats would convert three third downs, including an 18-yard strike from Walker to Downs that moved the ball past midfield. A 15-yard Stevenson penalty advanced the Bearcats inside the 35, before a 10-yard scamper by Walker set up first-and-goal on the Stevenson 8. The Bearcats were limited to just one yard over their next three snaps, but on fourth-and-goal, Walker connected with Matthew Esdelle for a 7-yard touchdown. Adam Koscielicki's extra point was good and SVC trailed just 19-14 with 4:23 to go in the third quarter.
In the opening stages of the fourth quarter, SVC looked primed to take the lead after Brown forced and recovered a fumble on the Stevenson 25. However, SVC was hamstrung by a pair of penalties and was forced to punt.
Stevenson opened its ensuing drive with a long run to get inside SVC territory, but the Bearcat defense then came up big to force another Mustang punt.
Irefin received the boot on the near hash on his own 15. After making the first tackler miss, he darted toward the sideline and scampered untouched into the end zone for the electrifying 85-yard touchdown, the first punt return touchdown for SVC since 2014. Koscielicki again nailed the extra point to give the Bearcats their first lead of the day, 21-19, with 7:05 left in regulation.
The advantage was short-lived, however, as the Mustangs answered right back with a 7-play, 64-yard scoring drive, capped off with a 6-yard Walker touchdown with 4:21 left in regulation. The two-point conversion try failed, as the Bearcats' Joanes Polynice snuffed out the run in the backfield and forced a fumble, keeping the Stevenson lead at two points.
SVC was unable to muster any more offense, however, as their ensuing drive ended in a punt, and Stevenson used its ground game to run out the clock and seal the victory.
The team statistics were nearly even, with SVC out-gaining Stevenson 263-261 in total offense. The Mustangs totaled 16 first downs to the Bearcats' 14, with SVC producing 190 yards through the air to Stevenson's 125. The difference came on the ground, as the Mustangs out-rushed the Bearcats 136-73.
Nathan Sullivan and Collins Jr. each added 6 tackles apiece, while Marvelle Cromerdie had three tackles and broke up a pair of passes.
With his 21 completions on the afternoon, SVC's Walker upped his career total to 337, surpassing the former team record of 316 held by current Bearcat head coach Aaron Smetanka.
Stevenson quarterback Ryan Sedgwick completed 13 of 20 passes for 121 yards, with 10 completions to Smothers, who gained 94 yards. Hammond and Walker each ran for 53 yards, while Tom Zatalava recorded a team-leading 8 tackles.
The Bearcats will be back in action on Saturday, Sept. 10, when they continue their three-game homestand with a 1 p.m. meeting against Washington & Jefferson at Chuck Noll Field.
Stevenson scores late to spoil Saint Vincent home-opener
/seasons/2022/boxscores/20220903_lge4.xml
2022
Stevenson
25
St. Vincent
21
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stevenson (1-0) | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 25 |
| St. Vincent (0-1) | 7 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
Sep 03, 2022