GROVE CITY, Pa. – The Grove City Wolverines defeated the Thiel Tomcats Saturday 21-7 at Robert E. Thorn Field to retain possession of the Mercer County Cup.
 
Quarterback Brian Pell led the Wolverines to their first touchdown late in the first quarter. Pell connected on passes of 13 and 23 yards during the drive, then delivered a touchdown pass to Anthony Ritchie from 10 yards out for the first points of the game. Kurt Devlin added the extra point to put the Wolverines up, 7-0.
 
Thiel's offense pieced together a solid drive after Ritchie's touchdown catch. Andrew Smith (Williamsfield, Ohio/Pymatuning Valley) and Taylor Fink (Kittanning, Pa./Kittanning) keyed the drive. Smith completed passes of seven, 13 and three yards while Fink carried three times for 26 yards. Unfortunately, the drive stalled at the Grove City 17-yard line.
 
Grove City mounted perhaps the most critical drive of the game late in the first half. Starting at their own 22-yard line the Wolverines picked up five first downs in just over two minutes and took a 14-0 lead into the locker room when Pell rifled his second touchdown pass of the game to Ritchie, this time on a slant pass from 13 yards out, with 24 seconds remaining in the second quarter.
 
The Tomcats refused to quit and gave the Wolverines all they could handle in the second half. After receiving the opening kickoff in the third quarter, Thiel marched 86 yards in eight plays to cut Grove City's lead down to 14-7.
 
A determined offensive line and freshman running back Josh Potter (Chipley, Fla./Chipley) were the difference on Thiel's touchdown drive. Potter carried six times on the drive, including a season-long 50-yard gash and the touchdown run up the middle from nine yards out.
 
“I was proud of the way our kids responded after being down 14-0 at the half,” Thiel head coach Kurt Reiser said.
 
Grove City ran just four plays on the next possession before punting the football back to Thiel.
 
The Tomcat offense went back to work after the punt, piecing together a lengthy 14-play drive that included six first downs and absorbed five minutes and thirty seconds of the third quarter clock. Potter appeared to trim Grove City's lead to 14-13 when he ran into the end zone from eight yards out on first-and-goal, but the Tomcats were flagged for holding on the play. Potter fumbled on the next play and the Wolverines recovered.
 
Grove City made Thiel pay for the fumble when Brian Pell scored a touchdown on a 4-yard run with less than 11 minutes remaining in regulation to extend his team's lead to 20-7. Devlin added the extra point to make it 21-7, which was the eventual final score.
 
Thiel drove the length of the field again on its ensuing possession, but could not get the ball into the end zone after securing a first-and-goal situation at the Grove City 7-yard line.
 
Thiel had two individual 100-yard rushers in the game – Potter (18-139) and Fink (14-103) – for the first time since Sept. 29, 2007, when Steve Minton and Dan Hess combined for 388 yards in a 37-13 win over Bethany.
 
Pell led Grove City's offense. He ran 14 times for 94 yards and scored one touchdown. He also completed 14-of-21 passes for 141 yards and threw two touchdown strikes to Ritchie.
 
Tim Taylor (Girard, Pa./Erie Cathedral Prep), Thiel's all-time career leader in sacks and tackles for loss, led the Tomcat defense with 10 total tackles, one of which was for a loss of three yards. He also recorded one quarterback hurry. Also for Thiel, sophomore Cody McClelland (Sarver, Pa./Freeport) and freshman Reily Shane (Tarentum, Pa./Highlands) each notched one sack. Linebacker Jason Ferguson led Grove City with 12 total tackles, three of which were for a loss of yards. He also intercepted a pass and recorded a sack and a fumble recovery.
 
Despite the loss, the Tomcats took steps in the right direction this season. Thiel concluded the 2012 campaign with a 3-7 overall record, which is the best finish since the 2009 team went 3-7.
 
“We're very excited about the future,” Reiser said. “I think we have a bright future.”