CLINTON, S.C. – Behind a stellar backup quarterback performance from collegiate newbie Tyler Wesley and another handful of noteworthy defensive tallies, the Presbyterian College football team assembled perhaps their most complete half of the 2022 campaign on Saturday afternoon against the Beacons of Valparaiso, translating to a seven-point advantage as both sides entered the intermission. However, in a tale of two drastically different halves, the visitors concluded the Pioneer Football League meeting on a lengthy 27-0 run to claim a 41-21 final decision.

Gathering a season-best 237 total yards for a single two-quarter period, the Blue Hose were firing on all cylinders largely thanks to Wesley's dazzling rush/pass combination that amounted to a 71% third-down conversion rate and an average of 21 yards per completed pass. The Beacons quickly cooked up several halftime adjustments to keep PC off the scoreboard over the final 30 minutes, winning their second PFL bout in as many attempts.
 
FINAL SCORE: Valparaiso, 41 – Presbyterian, 21
RECORDS: Presbyterian (1-5, 0-3 PFL) – Valparaiso (3-2, 2-0 PFL)
LOCATION: Bailey Memorial Stadium
 
OPENING KICK:
- Not only did the Blue Hose emerge with offensive purpose against a Valpo team that enjoyed an extra week of rest due to a BYE week, but a host of PC tacklers did their part as well to help grant head coach Steve Englehart's club the advantage after two frames. Most impressively of the crew was sophomore linebacker Alex Herriott, who polished a career-high 16 stops, the fifth-most in a single game in school history (10 of them in half #1), one of seven different Presbyterian defenders with at least one tackle for a loss.

- Splitting time in the backfield with fellow freshman Ty Englehart on a day where regular starter Nate Hayden was sidelined with injury complications, Wesley guided the Blue Hose to 210 yards in the opening half while responsible for all three scores on the day. Altogether, the St. Cloud, Fla. native racked up 230 yards through the air and 51 extra on the ground, throwing for one score and rushing for a pair more.

- The beneficiary of the majority of PC's big gains from Wesley and Englehart, redshirt-junior wideout Jalen Jones followed up a season-high 94-yard effort at Morehead State last Saturday with an even better 116-yard blowup versus Valpo, the highlight of his five catches occurring on the third drive with a 44-yard burst to the end zone.

- Another dangerous all-purpose threat on Saturday, do-everything running back Delvecchio Powell II turned PC's longest gain of the fall on a 3^rd & 13 snap from the team's own 22-yard line in the 2^nd quarter, a personal-best 63-yard reception for the redshirt-junior. The Savannah, Ga. product went for 126 combined yards in the Blue Hose's hot start, part of an offensive attack that amassed nearly six yards per play.
 

HOW IT HAPPENED:
- After both sides combined for 120 points in their first ever meeting last season (a 65-55 W for the Beacons in Indiana), Saturday's matchup featured a similar back-and-forth nature through the first 30 minutes, albeit in a much smaller manner. Surrendering an opening-drive score to Valpo in the early moments, the Blue Hose countered with the aforementioned TD to Jones which was the second of two conversions on third and long in that series alone, tying things up at seven after the first.

- This began a streak of three consecutive drives to end in seven points for the blue and white, ending their next series the same way at the 7:34 stamp of the 2^nd period. Progressing 75 yards in just 2:09, the bulk of which coming on the deep gash to Powell, Presbyterian once again evened the odds at 14 two plays later on a 10-yard scamper from Wesley.

- Sustaining the momentum for the rest of the half in another impressive drive distance of 62 yards, Presbyterian again secured a late-quarter touchdown off the legs of Wesley with just 29 seconds until the halftime recess. Freshman edge rusher Malek Horlback earned an unofficial assist to the team's third TD in a row, bringing down Beacon quarterback Mikey Appel for a nine-yard loss on a risky 4^th and 13 setup inside Blue Hose territory.

- Keeping the drive alive on a 7-yard toss to Powell in another crucial third-down conversion, Wesley set the line of scrimmage all the way down to the 1-yard line with a 29-yard scramble and a 13-yard dart to Jones. From there, a QB sneak allowed the Blue Hose a 21-14 cushion at intermission.

- The next four trips to the end zone all favored the visitors for the rest of the contest, beginning early in the 3^rd after a Presbyterian double-reverse interception gifted the Beacons possession with only 35 yards to paydirt. PC was unable to capitalize on their ensuing drive beginning at midfield thanks to a Valpo unsportsmanlike penalty, opening the door for the other side to scoop up the momentum.

- Still knotted up at 21 approaching the final chapter, the Blue Hose's first drive of the 4^th necessitated a pivotal response to Valparaiso's 96-yard touchdown drive that devoured over seven minutes of clock. Coach Englehart's squad wasn't presented with the answer they were hoping for, suddenly stopped in their tracks despite gaining 22 yards on the drive's first two plays.

- It was all Valpo from that point, dropping Presbyterian to 0-3 in PFL competition despite three spirited efforts over the past month. Still faced with an uphill climb over the remaining five games of the season due to some unfortunate results, the Blue Hose continue to improve on both sides of the field at the midway point of the schedule.
 
COACH ENGLEHART'S THOUGHTS:
"I was very pleased with the energy that we brought to the table over most of the first half, although we got behind the eight-ball a little bit too quickly in the 4^th quarter that gave Valparaiso the separation they needed. There were many things that I saw offensively that I liked, mostly in those first 30 minutes considering the strength of the opponent, but I think that we were worn down a bit too much there late, and we didn't have the right tools to be able to fight for the full 60 minutes. Regardless of how it ended today, I remain proud of the way our players are competing and fighting. Nobody wants to see them succeed more than our staff, and before long they'll be exactly where we want them to be".
 
NEXT UP:
The longest mileage in travel of the semester awaits the Blue Hose next Saturday, hopping on a flight across the entire country to meet San Diego on October 15 at 5:00 Eastern Standard Time. The Toreros gained a road victory over Drake on Saturday, their first PFL triumph after coming up short against Valpo two weeks back.

PC will look for their turn at PFL win #1 in California next week, which would simultaneously give them their first W over San Diego in three attempts, last falling to the Toreros in Clinton across the '21 matchup by a 69-28 margin.