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Western Carolinian Volume 63 (64) Number 04

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  • union Catamounts Fall to Blue Devils, 24-10 Bleil: Defense Looked Phenomenal by Daniel Hooker Sports Editor DURHAM — In a sense, it wasn't a win, but the Western Carolina University Catamount football team left Durham with a victory. It was a moral victory—or one that will build confidence for the team as it approaches the Southern Conference schedule. Duke (l-O) scored 17 unanswered first half points en route to a 24-10 victory over the Cats in the season-opener for both teams Saturday in Durham. WCU Head Coach Bill Bleil was proud of his team's performance against ACC opponent, Duke University. "I thought we played extremely hard on both sides of the ball. Our defense executed very well—they played phenomenal. We were in the game the whole way," said Bleil. Western (0-1) was led by junior tailback, Brad Hoover. On the night, Hoover gained 181 yards on 29 carries (6.24 yards per carry). That performance was the best by a Catamount running back in two seasons. On his way to 181, Hoover had a career-long 57-yard carry that set up a late Catamount score. Bleil stated, "When we knew Shawn (Snyder) wouldn't play, we knew that we'd have to run the ball more. Brad Hoover is one of the better—if not the best—running back in the league." Junior Shawn Snyder sprained his ankle last Tuesday in practice. The decision to whether or not he would start against Duke wasn't made until game time. It was then that sophomore Justin Cella found out that his first collegiate start at quarterback. "I found out ten minutes before the game that I was to start," commented the transfer from the University of Illinois. "That didn't give me a lot of time to think about it. Cella added, "I pretty much knew the offense, but I also knew that I had to perform." In his debut, Cella completed 14 of his 29 passes for 82 yards and managed not to get sacked by the Duke defense. "(Justin) Cella was thrown into a tough situation tonight. I feel like he played as well as he could based on the limited time and lack of reps," commented Bleil. On the other side of the ball, the WCU defense proved that itself against the Devil offense. They forced Duke to punt nine times, and held on a fourth and goal situation from the one-yard line in the first quarter. The defense was led by All-American Eric Johnson and Cranston Johnson with six tackles apiece, including eight unassisted tackled between them. WCU got a scare when both Eric Johnson and John Scott went down with cramps. Scott returned to the game, but Johnson did not. Western also sacked Duke quarterback Spencer Romine four times for a combined loss of 23 yards. Four different players— Brett Chappell, John Scott, Corey Jackson, and Jeff Chambers—got to the Blue Devils' QB. The Catamounts held Duke scoreless for the first 23-minutes of the game. However, the Blue Devils rolled off 17 unanswered points in the second quarter. Marcus Bradley, who led the 1997 Catamounts in tackles with 145, has returned to WCU as a coach. Following the season- opener, Bradley stated that he was proud of his alma mater and that the team played well. He also added that he was excited about this season. Following the game, Duke Head Coach Fred Goldsmith said, "I have to give credit to Western Carolina, their football team, and their coaching staff. I thought they played very well on a hot humid night here in Durham." Western Carolina has this week off to recuperate and prepare for the Southern Conference opener against The Citadel Bulldogs in Charleston, SC. Cgferns Brett Chappell (5) chases Duke's quarterback, Spencer Romine. The sa°ked the Duke QB four times Saturday night. - Photo by T.K. Roberts Duke 24, Western Carolina 10 Score by Quarters WCU Duke 1 2 3 4 Score 0 7 0 3 10 0 17 7 0 24 7:01 DUKE- 2:19 DUKE - 1:14 DUKE kick), 0- 17 Scoring Summary: 2nd Quarter Spencer Romine 1 yd run (Sims Lenhardt kick), 0-7 Sims Lenhardt 24 yd field goal, 0-10 S. Montgomery 25 yd pass from Spencer Romine (Sims Lenhardt 3rd Quarter 8:38 WCU - Brad Hoover 1 yd run (Ken Hinsley kick),7 - 17 :53 DUKE - R. Flowers 19 yd pass from Spencer Romine (Sims Lenhardt kick), 7-24 4th Quarter 4:03 WCU - Ken Hinsley 38 yd field goal, 10 - 24 WCU DUKE FIRST DOWNS RUSHES-YARDS (NET) PASSING YDS (NET) Passes Att-Comp-Int Total offensive plays - yards Fumble Returns-Yards Punt Returns-Yards Kickoff Returns-Yards Interception Returns-Yards Punts (Number-Avg) Fumbles-Lost Penalties-Yards Possession Time Sacks By: Number-Yards 14 15 40-181 41-114 81 188 30-14-0 22-10-0 70-262 63-302 0-0 0-0 2-2 5-31 5-84 0-0 0-0 0-0 10-36.7 9-36.1 4-2 1-0 8-47 8-65 30:55 28:02 4-23 0-0 RUSHING: Western Carolina-Brad Hoover 29-186, Justin Cella 4-9, Tracy Biggs 3-2, David Runner 1-1, Walter Gary 2-minus 2, Aaron Wright 1-minus 15. Duke-B.J. Hill 24-137, Dawud Rasheed 4-3, Fred Harris 2-0, S. Montgomery 2- minus 10, Spencer Romine 9-minus 16. PASSING: Western Carolina-Justin Cella 14-30-0-81. Duke-Spencer Romine 10-20-0-188, Bobby Campbell 0-2-0-0. RECEIVING: Western Carolina-Aaron Wright 5-40, Travise Pitman 2-14, Lamont Williams 2-14, Brad Hoover 2-6, David Runner 2-2, Mardell Miller 1 -5. Duke-R. Flowers 5-104, S. Montgomery 3-71, Terrence Dupree 1-21, B.J. Hill 1 - minus 8. INTERCEPTIONS: Western Carolina-None. Duke-None. Stadium: Wallace Wade Stadium Attendance: 22,460 Kickoff time: 7:00 End of Game: 10:04 Total elapsed time: 3:04 Officials: Referee: Joseph Rider; Umpire: Bert Pearce; Linesman: T. Symonette; Line judge: E. Benson; Back judge: V. Valdez; Field judge: B. Hendon; Side judge: M. Looney; Scorer: D. Foley; Temperature: 87. Wind: ESE 5mph. Weather: Mostly sunny, humid
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