SPORTS STORIES:
SPARTAN FOOTBALL—2009
no. 7 CASE 34, Carnegie mellon 17...
CLEVELAND, OH (November 7, 2009) - Next year when Case Western Reserve University and Carnegie Mellon University meet on the gridiron it will mark the 25th anniversary of the Academic Bowl. The Spartans will enter that game having won the last three meetings as they defeated Carnegie Mellon, 34-17, this afternoon at Gesling Stadium in Pittsburgh, Penn.
With the win, Case Western Reserve’s regular season win streak moves to 30 [dating back to Nov. 4, 2006] which includes nine straight University Athletic Association (UAA) games. It also secures them a Co-UAA title. The last time the Spartans, who are currently ranked No. 7 in the nation, lost a conference game was at Washington University on October 21, 2006.
Three things will be on the line next Saturday [Nov. 14] when Case Western Reserve (9-0, 2-0 UAA) host Washington in their regular season finale. A third consecutive outright UAA Championship, a third consecutive perfect [10-0] season and a third straight trip to the NCAA postseason.
The game, which begins at 12:00 p.m., will be rebroadcasted on SportsTime Ohio at 4:00 p.m. that day and again at 5:00 a.m. on Sunday.
Carnegie Mellon (5-4, 1-1 UAA) ate up almost half of the first quarter with a drive that resulted in a 23-yard field goal at 8:24 that put them up 3-0. Senior quarterback Dan Whalen (Willoughby, OH) hit junior receiver Zach Homyk (Chicago, IL-pictured) on a 29-yard TD pass less than three minutes [5:41] later to give Case Western Reserve its first lead, 7-3.
After two consecutive Spartan offensive drives ended in a fumble, including one inside the Carnegie Mellon 20 with 15 second left in the first quarter, Whalen put Case Western Reserve up 14-3 with his 30th TD pass of the year. He hit senior receiver Ryan Kolesar (Mentor, OH) on a 30-yard strike with 3:28 remaining in the half and that would end the first half scoring for both teams.
The 2008 Gagliardi Trophy finalist completed 15-of-18 passes for 236 yards and two TDs in the first half and finished the game 31-of-41 for 386 and three TDs [3 passing, 1 rushing]. He has thrown for 2,810 yards and 31 TDs this season.
Whalen orchestrated two more scores in the third quarter to put the Spartans up 27-10 entering the fourth. He hit Homyk again on 14-yard TD at 10:10 and after Carnegie Mellon’s first TD of the game at 7:50, Whalen galloped 19 yards for his fifth rushing TD of the season. Homyk finished the day with 13 grabs for 162 yards and two touchdowns. He currenntly leads the team with ten TD catches on the season. The two teams traded touchdowns in the last five minutes of the fourth quarter.
The Case Western Reserve defense made big stops early on. Senior linebacker Jeff Brown (North Omsted, OH) led the way with 13 tackles and junior defensive back Zach Hass (Peru, IN) added 12.
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