WASHINGTON, Pa. -- Junior running back
Jordan West (Washington, Pa./Washington) found the end zone six times and totaled 339 yards from scrimmage on 29 touches as the No. 10 Washington & Jefferson football team toppled No. 16 Case Western Reserve.
West's last two touchdowns were a 75-yard reception and 98-yard rush at 3:38 of the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach. It is the longest rush in the storied history of the W&J football program and the second-longest in Presidents' Athletic Conference history. That record is 99 yards, and ironically came by a Western Reserve player against Case Tech in 1956 (the two merged in 1970). The 339 yards all-purpose yards tied for the eighth most in a single in PAC history and is second at W&J, while sitting as the third-highest single-game total in NCAA Division III this year.
For the seventh-straight game dating back to last season's NCAA Second Round contest against Frostburg State, the Presidents scored on their opening drive, matching the points that CWRU put up to open the day. After a 39-yard kick-off return by freshman running back
Joey Koroly (Washington, Pa./Trinity) set up W&J at its own 45 to start, it took just five plays for the Presidents to cover the 55 yards as West capped the drive with a 21-yard reception from junior quarterback
Jacob Adams (Louisville, Ohio/Louisville).
The 7-7 margin held up for the first 15 minutes, with the Spartans possessing the football for 11:49 of the opening period. CWRU scored on the first play of the second quarter, however, to re-take the lead at 14-7. W&J was forced to punt on its ensuing possession, but senior defensive end
Sal DeCario (New Derry, Pa./Derry) recorded a strip-sack of CWRU's Drew Saxton to halt a Spartans' drive as sophomore linebacker
Cole Weston (Louisville, Ohio/Louisville) jumped on the loose ball at the W&J 44, which ignited the Red & Black to a 16-0 scoring run to take the lead for good. Adams found West for 10 yards on the 14th play of the driving following the fumble, but the PAT was blocked and W&J trailed, 14-13, with 3:03 to play in the first half. That drive was kept alive when freshman punter
Jacob Sarver (Sarver, Pa./Freeport) mishandled the snap on a fourth-and-14 punt and sprinted 20 yards for a first down. A 30-yard field goal as time ran out in the first half by junior kicker
Adam Napotnik (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) sent W&J into the locker room for halftime with a lead for the first time in the game, 16-13.
The second half opened up with sophomore wide receiver
Andrew Wolf (Ashland, Ohio/Hillsdale) returning the kickoff into CWRU territory, and 2:02 into the third quarter, Adams and West connected from 18 yards for the third time to make it a 23-14 game. Case answered to get within two points, 23-21, after an 11-play drive that took 7:03 off the clock, but a 42-yard return by Koroly gave W&J the ball near midfield and an eight-yard rush by West propelled the score to 30-21 at the 3:25-mark of the third quarter.
Case would again get within two points at 30-28 at 8:42 of the fourth quarter, but West took a short pass from Adams 75 yards for a score on the first play from scrimmage after a touchback on the kickoff, 37-28. The W&J defense showed up again as The Zackfield made its' presence know. The next two CWRU drives ended in interceptions, the first by senior safety
Zac Quattrone (White Oak, Pa./Serra Catholic) and the second at the W&J two-yard line by senior cornerback
Zack Queen (Level Green, Pa./Penn-Trafford). The latter pick set up the 98-yard, untouched, record-setting rush by West that iced the game with 3:38 to play, the junior's sixth touchdown of the day, 44-28.
The Spartans would make it interesting by finding the end zone with 1:24 left, but Wolf recovered the on-side kick attempt and Adams took a knee twice to officially send W&J to 6-0 on the season and 5-0 in the PAC.
West totaled career highs of 181 yards rushing (on 20 carries) and 158 yards receiving (on nine catches, four for scores). Adams completed 22-of-35 passes for 291 yards and four touchdowns, while Wolf (44 yards) and senior wide receiver
Tim Swoope (Venetia, Pa./Peters Township) (67 yards) each made five catches on the afternoon.
Defensively, W&J had eight tackles for losses and four sacks. Junior defensive lineman
Jeffrey Oxner (Silver Spring, Md./Bullis School) matched his career high with 3.0 tackles for loss, and also had a strip sack, to go with his nine total stops. For the second time in three weeks, senior linebacker
Cody Milsom (Butler, Pa./Knoch) led the Presidents in total tackles, accumulating 13 stops and 1.0 TFL plus 0.5 sack. Quattrone tallied 11 stops to go with his interception. Weston made a career-best nine stops in the victory. Defensive linemen junior
Mike Williams (Pittsburgh, Pa./Langley) and sophomore
Keith Knowell (McKeesport, Pa./McKeesport) both added 1.5 TFLs as part of five and four tackles, respectively. Williams also recovered a fumble.
On the afternoon, W&J rolled up 505 yards on 67 plays, but was slightly out-gained by CWRU, who put up 523 yards on 81 plays.
The Presidents will conclude the home portion of the 2018 regular season when they host Geneva at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 13. Not only will the game include pre-game Senior Day festivities, the weekend also serves as Homecoming at Washington & Jefferson College.
Highlights
Queen's interception that set up West's record-setting run
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