Spartans win on the road

Riley Simko, Staff Reporter

The Case Western Reserve University men’s football team hit the road on Saturday, Oct. 27, to defeat Bethany College, 34-3.

Spartan first-year kicker Robertson Albrecht kicked the game off to a strong start with a 24-yard field goal in the first quarter. The Bethany College Bison couldn’t manage to put any points on the board in the first quarter, so the Spartans maintained their 3-0 lead until the clock ran out.

Fourth-year wide receiver Luke DiFrancesco opened the second quarter with a 14-yard touchdown reception from first-year quarterback Drew Saxton. Down 10-0, the Bison pushed hard, scoring a 38-yard field goal kick with less than two minutes left in the half.

Fourth-year Spartan wide receiver Joey Spitalli caught a 17-yard pass from Saxton for a touchdown, bringing the score to 17-3 in favor of CWRU.

Fourth-year defensive end Cameron Brown had a 15-yard interception return, scoring a quick touchdown for the Spartans and bringing the score to 27-3. Brown also recorded three sacks throughout the course of the Bethany game, bringing his season total to 14, the highest on the team.

To wrap up the Spartan win, first-year defensive back Colin Schuster made a fast 51-yard interception return, storming down the field to end the game with a score of 34-3.

Unable to rally their offense against the strong Spartan defensive line, the Bison didn’t manage to score a single touchdown during the game.

When asked about the Bethany game, Spitalli stayed humble about his efforts.

“I’m very happy to have contributed to the win on Saturday,” he said. “The most important thing is that we won the game, so I’ll do anything I can do to help make that happen.”

The CWRU football team’s record is now 7-1 overall and 6-1 in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC).

Second-year linebacker Travis Johnston was cautiously optimistic about the Spartans’ winning record.

“While being undefeated is always the goal,” Johnston said, “it is still a very great feeling to have a record the reflects the countless hours the team has put into practicing and preparing for the season.”

“Going forward, we’re going to take it one game at a time, so beating Waynesburg is our biggest goal right now,” Spitalli said. “Ideally, though, we’d like to win out and have the opportunity for a potential playoff berth.”

Next week the Spartans will be at home, playing their penultimate regular season game against Waynesburg University on DiSanto Field at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 3. Waynesburg has a 4-4 record overall and a 4-3 record in the PAC.