GROVE CITY, Pa. – Thiel College suffered a 35-21 loss to Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) rival Grove City College in the 27th installment of the battle for the Mercer County Cup Saturday afternoon at Grove City's Robert E. Thorn Field.

Grove City finished with an impressive 467-177 advantage in total yards, which included a 392-115 edge in rushing yards. Grove City's Blaine Miller saved his best effort of the season for the passionate rivalry game between the Tomcats (0-10, 0-7) and the Wolverines (5-5, 3-4), finishing with 225 yards on 33 carries and a pair of touchdowns (3, 58). 

Thiel, down 21-0 with the second quarter quickly coming to a close, registered its first points of the day as freshman quarterback Jared Soell (Oakmont, Pa., Riverview) connected with freshman tight end Kyle Turkalj (Greensburg, Pa., Hempfield) on an impressive 20-yard pitch-and-catch with 1:38 to play in the half to cut the Wolverine lead to 21-7. The four-play scoring drive encompassed 63 yards and took just 1:27 off of the clock.

An interception by Tomcat sophomore free safety Marshaun Hainesworth (Warren, Ohio, John F. Kennedy) that was returned to the Grove City 23-yard line all the way from the Tomcat 20 led to an eight-yard scoring scamper by Soell with 9:57 to go in the third, trimming the Wolverine lead to just seven, 21-14. 

Grove City wasted little time in supplying a response as Miller carried seven-straight times on the ensuing drive, running in his first score of the day from three yards out to extend the Wolverine's lead back to 14, 28-14.

Soell's quick feet led to the Tomcats' third scoring drive of the afternoon as he converted a second-and-goal play from eight yards out to bring the visiting Tomcats back to within seven, 28-21. 

A missed 24-yard field goal by Grove City's Craig Bicehouse sandwiched between a pair of Tomcat punts led to a Grove City drive with 4:44 remaining from their own 39-yard line. Miller's third down, 58-yard scoring run with 3:11 to play pushed the Wolverine lead to the eventual final of 35-21.

Brian Pell led an efficient Grove City offense, completing eight-of-13 passes for 98 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 38 yards and a score. Ed Reith added another 98 yards on the ground on 10 carries, including a 50-yard scoring run in the second. Luke O'Hara posted three catches for 57 yards and a score. 

Soell finished 10-of-22 for 92 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He also added 23 yards on 14 carries and a pair of touchdown runs. Freshman tailback Derrell McCaleb (Ashtabula, Ohio, Lakeside) rushed seven times for 26 yards while sophomore tailback Justin Wazelle (Burghill, Ohio, John F. Kennedy) totaled 26 yards on five carries. Turkalj paced the Tomcat receiving corps as he finished the day with four catches for 49 yards and a score. Freshman wide receiver Nate Houpt (Greenville, Pa., Greenville) and sophomore wide receiver Tyler DeJong (Columbiana, Ohio, Columbiana) each added a pair of catches.

Mark Rossol totaled six tackles while four Wolverines, including Zack Patterson, finished the day with five stops. Patterson posted 2.5 of Grove City's five sacks in the victory.

Sophomore linebacker Ethan Ludwig (East Liverpool, Ohio, East Liverpool) had a 14-tackle effort to lead the Tomcat defense. Junior linebacker Ryan Dawes (Transfer, Pa., Reynolds) added 11 while sophomore defensive end Tim Taylor (Girard, Pa., Erie Cathedral Prep) registered five stops, including 2.0 sacks and 3.0 tackles for loss. 

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