catamount man
October 18th, 2009, 07:02 AM
Finally! Western Carolina rallies for 1st win
Tyler Norris Goode • October 18, 2009 12:15 AM
CULLOWHEE — Scoreless and clawless for 2 1/2 quarters against The Citadel, Western Carolina's offense found itself in a familiar situation Saturday evening: Desperately needing a spark.
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Trailing by 10 midway through the third quarter, the Catamounts finally got one.
Quarterback Zack Jaynes took a snap on second-and-4, faked a reverse handoff then fired a 39-yard pass that Marquel Pittman caught at The Citadel's 7-yard line.
The Catamounts' longest play of the game set up the first of two touchdown runs by former Owen High standout Dion Wilson, and the defense stepped up big late to preserve a 14-10 win, WCU's first of the season.
Dozens of the 6,821 fans poured from the Whitmire Stadium stands after the final horn and celebrated with the Catamounts (1-5, 1-3), who avoided getting off to their worst start since 1953.
“If you look throughout the whole game, there's a holding penalty there, blocked kicks, fumbles, but that's the one spark we'd needed the whole season,” said Jaynes, a Pisgah High alum who completed 15-of-22 passes for 166 yards. “The tempo of the game just rose from there.”
Still, the latter stages were filled with plenty of tense moments for both squads.
On a fourth-and-1 at The Citadel's 6, Wilson took the hand-off from Jaynes and sprinted untouched into the end zone.
“I was looking for the first down,” Wilson said. “I was like, ‘Wow!'”
It marked the first time the Cats had led in a game this season, but the game was far from over.
The Citadel (2-4, 0-3) had one last crack at the end zone on a fourth-and-3 from the WCU 15, but the Catamounts' Mitchell Bell batted away a potentially game-winning pass with two seconds remaining to lock up Western's seventh win in its last 41 games.
“I was holding my breath and saying prayers that we would get this opportunity,” WCU coach Dennis Wagner said. “That's what I told the guys at halftime. I told them to put themselves into the position where it goes down to the last play of the game. It just so happened to work out that way.”
WCU's last win came on Nov. 1 last season against Chattanooga.
(Great atmosphere, great day, great win. COLD, COLD, COLD!!!!
WAY TO GO BOYS!!!!!!! xthumbsupx xthumbsupx xthumbsupx)
Tyler Norris Goode • October 18, 2009 12:15 AM
CULLOWHEE — Scoreless and clawless for 2 1/2 quarters against The Citadel, Western Carolina's offense found itself in a familiar situation Saturday evening: Desperately needing a spark.
Advertisement
Trailing by 10 midway through the third quarter, the Catamounts finally got one.
Quarterback Zack Jaynes took a snap on second-and-4, faked a reverse handoff then fired a 39-yard pass that Marquel Pittman caught at The Citadel's 7-yard line.
The Catamounts' longest play of the game set up the first of two touchdown runs by former Owen High standout Dion Wilson, and the defense stepped up big late to preserve a 14-10 win, WCU's first of the season.
Dozens of the 6,821 fans poured from the Whitmire Stadium stands after the final horn and celebrated with the Catamounts (1-5, 1-3), who avoided getting off to their worst start since 1953.
“If you look throughout the whole game, there's a holding penalty there, blocked kicks, fumbles, but that's the one spark we'd needed the whole season,” said Jaynes, a Pisgah High alum who completed 15-of-22 passes for 166 yards. “The tempo of the game just rose from there.”
Still, the latter stages were filled with plenty of tense moments for both squads.
On a fourth-and-1 at The Citadel's 6, Wilson took the hand-off from Jaynes and sprinted untouched into the end zone.
“I was looking for the first down,” Wilson said. “I was like, ‘Wow!'”
It marked the first time the Cats had led in a game this season, but the game was far from over.
The Citadel (2-4, 0-3) had one last crack at the end zone on a fourth-and-3 from the WCU 15, but the Catamounts' Mitchell Bell batted away a potentially game-winning pass with two seconds remaining to lock up Western's seventh win in its last 41 games.
“I was holding my breath and saying prayers that we would get this opportunity,” WCU coach Dennis Wagner said. “That's what I told the guys at halftime. I told them to put themselves into the position where it goes down to the last play of the game. It just so happened to work out that way.”
WCU's last win came on Nov. 1 last season against Chattanooga.
(Great atmosphere, great day, great win. COLD, COLD, COLD!!!!
WAY TO GO BOYS!!!!!!! xthumbsupx xthumbsupx xthumbsupx)