Throughout last week, everybody knew that Waynesburg’s football game against the Saint Vincent Bearcats would come down to the wire Saturday.

Both teams had beaten Thiel for their only Presidents Athletic Conference win of the season, and were looking for a second victory. The game was tied at the half, with a score that was never separated by more than seven points. The Jackets came out on the losing end of the battle, however, with a 21-17 loss. 

“We played hard,” Waynesburg coach Chris Smithley said. “I love the enthusiasm we brought to the field today. We made some really good things happen.”

Freshman running back Justin Flack rushed for 124 yards and scored both Waynesburg touchdowns. 68 of those yards came on one rushing score in the first quarter, which gave the Jackets an early lead. His other touchdown came with just 4:22 left in the game, receiving a four-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Mason Schrenker. The go-ahead score by the Jackets was spoiled after an eight-yard touchdown run from Saint Vincent’s Mike Stasko with under a minute to go.

The punting game for Waynesburg was a challenge throughout the day. Sophomore Kadin Roberts registered three punts that went just 25 yards or fewer. This included a kick in the fourth quarter that traveled just 12 yards. Smithley saw the Waynesburg special teams as a factor in the game that tipped the scale.

“Our special teams wasn’t getting done with the job that we needed to get done,” he said. “We gave them a couple of short porches. On those short porches they put 14 points on us.”

Schrenker and Saint Vincent’s Lorenzo Cota each threw for fewer than 100 yards. Cota also threw two interceptions, one to Brennan Sefick and another to Ty McEliece. . The McEliece pick came on the Bearcats’ first drive of the second half.

“I was really just trying to bat the ball down because it’d give us good field position,” McEliece said. “Once the ball was tipped, I knew I had to do everything possible to make sure the receiver didn’t catch it. The feeling afterwards was unreal.” 

It’s possible that weather caused problems for both sides. Rain fell throughout the day at John F. Wiley Stadium, and was noticeably heavy late in the game. For Smithley, however, mother nature didn’t make an impact.

“We prepare for this stuff mentally during the week,” Smithley said, “and it rained throughout the week. That isn’t that big of a deal for us.”

Waynesburg will enjoy a bye week before gearing up for its final two games. For Smithley, the break will mostly be used to rest up, and get back to basics. 

“We gotta get these guys some time off,” Smithely said. “We’re going to get some time in the weight room, and work on situational football.”

After the break, the Jackets will host Case Western Reserve for their final home game  Nov.9. That will be followed with a matchup against Washington & Jefferson on the road, to wrap up the season Nov. 16.

“This team right here [Saint Vincent] almost beat Case Western last week,” Smithley said. “We’re gonna have our opportunity to go knock off two good football teams. We’re excited about our opportunities to finish this the right way.”