#15 football team takes 41-10 victory over Waynesburg
Men’s Football
On Saturday, Sept. 16, the 15th-ranked Carnegie Mellon men’s football team hosted the Waynesburg University Yellow Jackets at Gesling Stadium for their second home game of the season.
Though Waynesburg were the first to receive, a Yellow Jackets fumble gave the ball to the Tartans 22 yards from the endzone. The Tartans weren’t able to make it much further and settled for a 3-0 lead thanks to a 22-yard field goal from sophomore Justin Caputo. He also put the next score on the board with four minutes left in the first quarter, making it 6-0 in favor of the Tartans. Before the clock hit zero, the Tartans put seven more points on the board following a 21-yard pass from senior Ben Mills to senior Brian Stacy.
In the second quarter, the Tartans were also the first to add points to the board. A 73-yard drive and one-yard run from sophomore Joey McGinnis made the score 20-0, though Waynesburg scored a field goal of their own before the half was over.
The Tartans kept up the pace after returning from the locker room. They managed to put 14 more points to their score without a Waynesburg answer in the third quarter. Senior Ethan Reifer caught a seven-yard pass for the first touchdown and a joint effort from junior Nolan Pitsenberger and senior Thomas Coury off a blocked Yellow Jackets punt earned the Tartans the second.
Before the game was over, Waynesburg managed to make it into the endzone after a 40-yard run, making the score 34-10. This wouldn’t go unanswered, and the Tartans earned seven more points thanks to a one-yard quarterback keeper from senior Brady Hess.
This 41-10 win over Waynesburg has put the football team at 3-0 overall and in conference play this year. They will be traveling to Grove City College next Saturday to take on the Wolverines for a 7:00 p.m. kickoff.
Men’s Soccer
On Sunday, Sept. 10, the Carnegie Mellon men’s soccer team went on the road for the first time this season to take on Westminster College. Throughout the 90 minutes of play, the only goal of the game happened in the 40th minute of play, when junior Ethan Vertal sunk one into the net following an assist from sophomore Brendan Schonwetter. This put the Tartans up 1-0, and it would stay that way from the rest of the game, moving them to 3-1 on the season.
Their next game was on Wednesday, Sept. 13, when they traveled to Washington and Jefferson College. With under four minutes left in the first half, sophomore Matthew Cadena put one past the Washington and Jefferson goalkeeper to put the Tartans up 1-0. In the 69th minute, senior Alejandro Fernandez extended the Tartans' lead to 2-0 with a shot in the lower left corner. Six minutes later, first-year Dominic Hoar-Weiler put one in the opposite side of the net, securing a 3-0 win for the Tartans and advancing them to 4-1 on the season.
For their third game of the week, the Tartans traveled to Bethany College on Saturday, Sept. 16. Hoar-Weiler put the first point on the board in the 15th minute off a free kick from senior Josh Baugh. In the 39th minute, first-year Nicholas Kourakis put one into the net, which was followed 22 seconds later by junior Chris Lee, who converted a penalty kick, making the score 3-0 Tartans. Baugh would score a goal of his own off a free kick in the 57th minute, making it 4-0. Bethany did manage to score a goal in the 78th minute to make it 4-1, but it was not enough, giving the Tartans the win.
The men’s soccer team is now 4-1 on the season and will be hosting Mount Aloysius College on Wednesday, Sept. 20 for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff.
Women’s Soccer
The Carnegie Mellon women’s soccer team finished out the Shenandoah Tournament on Sunday, Sept. 10 with a game against the host Shenandoah University. In the 12th minute, sophomore Vivian Wang scored the first point for Carnegie Mellon off an assist from junior Ayana Curto. Thirty-one minutes later, graduate student Caitlynn Owens recorded another goal for the Tartans, making it 2-0 at the end of the half. The last goal of the game occurred in the 68th minute when junior Gemma Jefferson put one in the net. This 3-0 win for the then-eighth-ranked Tartans advanced them to 5-0 on the season.
For their next game, the second-ranked women’s soccer team traveled to Grove City College on Wednesday, Sept. 13. In the 23rd minute, junior Maria Askounis got one in the net, giving the Tartans a 1-0 lead. In the 29th minute, sophomore Jenna Hallbeck put another one in the Grove City goal, pushing the Tartans’ lead to 2-0, where it remained for the rest of the half. Eight minutes into the second half, the Tartans recorded another point thanks to junior Cecelia Dieterich. In the 77th minute, first-year Saveria Ulizzi earned another goal for the Tartans, increasing their lead to 4-0. This was furthered even more in the 89th minute when first-year Natalie Rayce one more in the net, earning the Tartans their sixth win of the season.
On Friday, Sept. 15, the Tartans hosted Ohio Northern University after being on the road for their last three games. Dieterich opened the scoring for the Tartans in the eighth minute thanks to an assist from Hallbeck. In the 39th minute of the game, Ulizzi extended the Carnegie Mellon lead to 2-0. Before the half was over, senior Breana Valentovish earned the third Tartan goal off a corner kick from senior Alana Frederick. With less than a minute left in the game, Curto sank one last shot in the net, cementing a 4-0 Tartan win. This was the Tartans’ sixth straight shutout; they have held their opponents to one goal this season.
The women’s soccer team will next be heading to Highmark Stadium to take on Point Park University on Saturday, Sept. 23.