Football
Football: Spartans Handle Rain and Big Red
Date: Sept. 8, 2007
Location: CLEVELAND
Drew Homyk posted a career-high 16 tackles against Case.
Case Western Reserve took a 21-0 lead in the the first first quarter and battled through heavy rains and a lengthy lightning delay en route to a 45-6 victory over the Denison Big Red at Case Field on Saturday night.
The Spartans got on the board quickly in the first quarter when quarterback Dan Whalen found Ryan Kolesar for a 30-yard touchdown pass, capping off a 7-play 66-yard drive. On the following drive, Case's Jeff Brown scooped up a DU fumble and went 45-yards for the score. Case would go on to score three more times (two TDs, one field goal) before the Big Red got on the board.
Denison's lone touchdown came when junior tailback Jon Berg (Washington, Pa./Trinity) broke through the line and into the Spartan secondary where he raced 54 yards for his first touchdown of the season.
The Denison defense was kept mighty busy all night as the Spartan offense was on the field for 41 of the game's 60 minutes. Sophomore safety Drew Homyk (Chicago, Ill./St. Ignatius Prep), who was celebrating his 20th birthday on the field while playing against his brother, Zach (a freshman wide receiver for Case), totaled a career-best 16 tackles. The 16 stops were the most by a DU defender since senior Jason Wright (Granville, Ohio/Watkins Memorial) notched 18 tackles versus Waynesburg in 2005. Also reaching double-figures in the tackle category were linebackers Joe Ulrey (Marengo, Ohio/Highland) and Kyle Yeary (Reading, Ohio/Reading) who both posted 10 stops apiece.
Offensively, Berg led the Denison rushing attack with nine carries for 72 yards. Sophomore quarterback Tom Simeone (Bethesda, Md./The Potomac School) was 9-for-23 for 70 yards and one interception. Nick Thompson (East Grand Rapids, Mich./East Grand Rapids) led the receivers with three catches for 31 yards.
Whalen finished the night 17-of-29 for 209 yards and one TD. Tim Cowdrick was his favorite target, catching eight passes for 122 yards.
Denison is idle next Saturday and will return on Sept. 22 when they host Gallaudet at 2 p.m.