Oct 15, 2006 By The 5 min read

Vulcans conquer The Rock, 24-14 Junior quarterback Joe Ruggiero threw for one touchdown and ran for an insurance TD in the final three minutes of the game to lead California University of Pa. to a 24-14 victory over visiting Slippery Rock Saturday.

Cal (5-2, 3-0 PSAC West), ranked No. 11 in the NCAA Div. II Northeast Region, extended its win streaks to three games overall and nine straight at home games over the past two years. It’s the Vulcans best start in league play since 1981. Slippery Rock (4-3, 1-2 PSAC West) suffered its second-straight loss and third-straight setback at Cal’s Adamson Stadium.

Ruggiero completed 22-of-35 passes for 223 yards, including an eight-yard scoring strike to Brandon Jackson in the first quarter. Ruggiero went over 4,000 yards for career passing (4,198) and registered his 11th 200-yard performance in 20 career games.

Ruggiero also engineered a 17-play, 80-yard drive that took more than eight minutes off the clock in the fourth quarter and scored on a broken play on fourth-and-goal at the one to seal the victory. Ruggiero missed the hand-off to Brandon Lombardy, who was looking to add to his career-high 32 carries for 140 yards, but then found a hole and dove into the end zone himself to set the final score with 2:32 left in the game.

Laurel Highlands graduate Nate Forse caugh four of Ruggiero’s tosses for 49 yards.

Slippery Rock quarterback Nate Crookshank was 14-for-25 for 183 yards, including a 31-yard TD strike to Luke Wetzel. Crookshank was sacked five times by Cal,s defense, including twice by Kirby Griffin.

Cal’s Marc Huddleston opened the game with a 100-yard kickoff return, breaking the school record set by former NFL standout Perry Kemp (98 yards vs. IUP in 1983). It was Huddleston’s second career kickoff returned for six points.

Late in the first quarter, Cal drove 65 yards and took a 14-0 lead on Jackson’s fourth TD reception of the season.

The Rock answered with a 72-yard scoring drive, capped by Wetzel’s 31-yard TD reception.

Tyler Lorenz’ 25-yard field goal put Cal up 17-7 at halftime.

In the second half, four interceptions by Johnson and Kemp, all in Cal territory, denied the Rock from ever tying the game.

Slippry Rock cut Cal’s lead to 17-14 in the third quarter with a 10-play, 63-yard drive, capped by a fourth-and-1 conversion by Damarcus Cleckley.

Women’s tennis

California junior Inga Chilingaryan finished 6th in the singles bracket and teamed with freshman Yumi Matsuto to finish fourth in the doubles tournament at the ITA small college women’s tennis national championship tournament Saturday.

Chilingaryan, ranked 29th entering the singles event, fell to Dasha Segenchuck of East Central University in the fifth-place match, 6-3, 7-5.

Chilingaryan, the two-time PSAC singles champ who won the ITA East region title this season, finished the fall season with a 21-2 record.

In doubles, Chilingaryan and Matsuto fell in the third-place match to top-seeded Julia Ustyzhanina and Ramona Husaru of BYU-Hawaii, 6-3, 4-6, 10-5, to finish the season 15-2.

Women’s soccer

Washington & Jefferson 1, Waynesburg 0 – Sophomore midfielder Samantha Sosko scored midway through the second half to help Washington & Jefferson defeat Waynesburg, 1-0, in Presidents’ Athletic Conference women’s soccer action on Saturday afternoon.

The victory was W&J’s first conference win in 2006. The Presidents also evened their record at 7-7-1 overall, while the Yellow Jackets dropped to 5-8-1 overall and 1-2 in the league.

Sosko scored her goal with 26:27 remaining in the second half. Sophomore goalie Jackie Foltz earned her fifth shutout of the season.

Men’s soccer

Waynesburg 2, Washington & Jefferson 1 – David Peters scored five minutes into the second half to lift Waynesburg past Washington & Jefferson in men’s soccer action on Saturday at John Wiley Stadium.

The Yellow Jackets (5-10) snapped a 15-match losing streak to the Presidents (5-6-3) and defeated W&J for just the second time in 24 career meetings between the two schools.

Washington & Jefferson assumed a 1-0 lead nine minutes into the match on sophomore midfielder Jeremy Delmaster’s goal. Junior midfielder Marc Clayton assisted on the goal.

The Yellow Jackets tied the game on a Dave Thorn goal in the 32nd minute and Peters’ early second-half goal held up for the game winner.

Sophomore goalkeeper Tyler Hodgins made two saves for the Presidents, who held an 8-5 shot advantage. Brad Davis posted five saves for Waynesburg.

Girls soccer

Waynesburg Central 4, West Mifflin 1 – Clair Vehar and Rebecca Rohanna each had a goal and an assist as Waynesburg Central rolled past West Mifflin in non-section action.

West Mifflin’s Alysha Sharik was first to score, but it was all Lady Raiders after that as Ashley Phillips kicked off the scoring for the Lady Raiders on the assist from Clair Vehar.

Abby Toothman opened the second half with a goal on the assist from Rohanna. Rohanna and Vehar followed with goals to seal the deal.

Miatta Toothman had seven saves for Waynesburg (12-4, 9-3).

The Lady Raiders host Elizabeth-Forward Monday.