Evan Shimensky threw for 288 yards and four touchdowns, while Dustin Lowman Sr caught four passes for 124 yards and a pair of scores to lead Saint Vincent to a 28-21 victory over Waynesburg University at Chuck Noll Field.
After the teams traded punts to start the day, the Bearcats got on the board with a big play at the 11:24 mark of the first quarter. On a second down play from the 21-yard line, Shimensky completed a long pass to Lowman, and he carried it the rest of the way, for a 79-yard score. Steven Scherer added the extra point to make it 7-0.
Waynesburg came back quickly, starting with Austin Wilson's 40-yard return of the kickoff, giving the visitors the ball near midfield. Four plays and three SVC penalties later, Zach Helsel scored on a four-yard run to tie the game.
After the Bearcats failed to convert on a fourth down rush near midfield, Waynesburg drove 52 yards in seven plays, again aided by a pair of SVC penalties. Quarterback Jake Dougherty hit Kevin Barnes with a 13-yard pass into the end zone to complete the drive, giving Waynesburg a 14-7 advantage with 4:14 remaining in the first quarter.
SVC then took to the air, starting with a trick play, as Lowman took a pitch from Shimensky, then threw a 29-yard pass to Damon Black, giving SVC a first down at the Waynesburg 40. Shimensky then hit Ryan Crawford for an 11-yard completion, then sent a pass toward the end zone on the next play, as Ariel Martinez made a move around his defender and caught the pass at the two-yard line, evading the defense and getting into the end zone for the touchdown. Scherer's kick tied the game with 2:58 remaining in the quarter.
The second quarter saw both defenses tighten, but SVC managed to take the lead with just 1:01 remaining in the half when Shimensky completed a pass to Crawford from 11 yards out, making it 21-14. The hosts then took that lead into the locker room.
Waynesburg received the second half kickoff and managed to put together another scoring drive, this one covering 55 yards in 11 plays. Jerry Lawman ran the ball on the final three plays, the last of which was a 1-yard scoring run. The Scott Lewis extra point tied the game with 8:06 left in the third.
After Jhanard Dorsett returned the kickoff to the SVC 33, SVC was moved back to its own 21 after a first down penalty. Shimensky then went to work, connecting with Shavonta Craft for 37 yards, moving the ball to the Waynesburg 42. The Jacket defense stopped SVC on third down, setting up a 4th-and-4 from the Waynesburg 36. Shimensky found Lowman to complete the pass, but it appeared as though he was going to be stopped short of the first down marker. Lowman then broke several tackles en route to the first down marker, but managed to elude the defense all the way to the end zone for what would prove to be the game-winning touchdown.
Each team was forced to punt on its next several possessions, but an errant SVC punt at the 9:26 mark gave Waynesburg the ball on the SVC 18 to start a drive. A Waynesubrg pentalty appeared to put the visitors in a tough spot, but a pass interference call on 4th and 17 gave the Jackets a first-and-goal opportunity at the SVC 10. However, a pair of penalties backed Waynesburg to the SVC 23 for a fourth-and-goal play, and Dougherty's pass fell incomplete while trying to reach Kevin Barnes.
SVC was forced to punt again, but David Butler's punt was perfectly placed, forcing Waynesburg to start the drive from its own 3-yard line. On a third-and-11, Dougherty hit Tim Cooper for a 26-yard gain to keep the drive alive. Three plays later, Dougherty and Barned got together for a 23-yard pass, moving the ball to the Saint Vincent 33. After another completion moved the ball to the 20 yard line with just under a minute left, Dougherty was hit as he was releasing a pass, and Devin Anderson intercepted the ball at the 3-yard-line for the Bearcats, preserving the Saint Vincent win.
Shimensky was 19-for-28 on the day to lead the offense. Craft caught 5 passes for 81 yards, while Lowman was joined with 4 receptions by Crawford. Damon Black had three catches for 48 yards. On the ground, Dorsett had 10 carries for 50 yards.
Defensively, the Bearcats were led by Renny LaRue-Holloman's 7 tackles. Anderson, Kim Ornis and Andrew Geisler had six each. Darrell Burrell and TJ Feeney recorded sacks.
Waynesburg's Jerry Lawman carried the ball 20 times for 90 yards, while Dougherty went 16-for-34 through the air for 189 yards. Kevin Barnes caught six passes for 73.
Both teams are now 1-1 on the season. While the teams are both in the Presidents' Athletic Conference, the game was officially a non-conference game. The PAC slate starts next weekend, when the Bearcats travel to Cleveland to face Case Western for a 7PM kickoff.