Football breezes by Geneva to secure second win
By Chance Rains · Contributing Writer
The Grove City College football team secured their second win last Saturday, Oct. 4, with a 22-9 victory over the Golden Tornadoes of Geneva College.
The Wolverines were aided by an impressive defensive performance from senior linebacker Ben Bladel, who put up a single-game, record-tying performance with four sacks. Bladel’s performance highlighted a dominant evening for the Wolverines defense, holding the Tornadoes to negative rushing yards and stalling their ground game completely.
While Geneva’s junior quarterback Caleb Romano did lead a furious aerial attack to the tune of 19 completed passes for 335 yards and a touchdown, the Wolverines were able to hold their opponent to single-digit points for the first time this year.
“I had no clue that I tied the record during the game. I feel honored to be in the record books, but football is truly a team sport, and it takes all 11 doing their part to lead to individual success,” Bladel said.
On the offensive side, junior quarterback Sutton Ellis went 16-for-27 and tallied three touchdowns through the air while junior running back Chase Rankin totaled 157 rushing yards on 25 carries from the ground.
While neither team was able to find success early in the first quarter, Geneva broke the deadlock with a seven-play, 56-yard drive that resulted in a 23-yard field goal to take a 3-0 lead.
The Wolverines struck back quickly, with Ellis finding junior wide receiver Breck Peacock for a 75-yard touchdown. Following a 60-yard kickoff return, Geneva stalled another drive and turned it over after failing to convert a fourth down, setting the Wolverines up with excellent field position. Ellis capitalized on this advantage, throwing a two-yard touchdown pass to Peacock. The extra point attempt was no good, giving the Wolverines a 10-point advantage, 13-3, going into the half.
The Wolverines received the ball to start the second half and drained the clock on a seven-minute, 45-second scoring drive to go up 19-3. Ellis connected with junior wide receiver Daniel Sullivan on the two-yard touchdown but failed to secure the two-point conversion.
Geneva would make a rapid advance on their next drive, making it to the two-yard line of Grove City, but an interception by sophomore cornerback Mason Clouse gave the Wolverines the ball back. Grove City and Geneva traded punts to end the third quarter.
Grove City’s next drive resulted in a missed field goal, but another turnover on downs by Geneva allowed Grove City to move the ball into field goal range. Freshman kicker Brady Lane’s kick was good from 44-yards to the Wolverines and extended the lead to 22-3.
Geneva was not out of it yet, with Romano throwing a 62-yard touchdown pass on the next drive. The extra point attempt was good, narrowing the Wolverines lead to 22-9. Grove City failed to move the ball on their next possession, giving it back to Geneva with 3:14 to go. A sack from Bladel forced Geneva to burn their final timeout, and senior linebacker Keegan Fraiser intercepted a Romano pass to seal the victory for the Wolverines.
Senior captain Ethan Wiley said the team learned a lot from the game.
“When we live in the vision that we’ve been given, we’re a really good football team. What sets us apart is when we’re disciplined to that vision,” Wiley said.
The Wolverines return to Robert E. Thorn Field tomorrow for a homecoming showdown against the Waynesburg Yellow Jackets. The game will kick off at 2 p.m. and will serve as the culmination of the weekend’s event line-up.
