Co-writer and editor Morgan Korson
The Western Carolina University Catamounts took on Elon University on Saturday, Sept. 13, with back-and-forth play that had the fans on their toes the whole time. The cats lost the battle with final score 31-37.
After giving up a quick touchdown, the Cats quickly got on the board with a pass from Bennett Judy. The Elon Phenix scored right at the end of the first quarter, making the score 14-7. Elon and WCU traded touchdowns in the second quarter, and the score climbed to 20-14. Elon tried a trick play instead of going for the extra point, and it failed. As time expired in the first half, Elon made a 48-yard field goal, giving the Phenix a two-score lead.
To start the second half, Dominic Dutton returned a kick 97 yards for a touchdown. Just 3 minutes later, a 62-yard run from James Tyre gives the Catamounts their first lead of the game, 28-23. To end the third quarter, the Elon Phenix made 2 field goals. The Cats came back up the field and took the lead back with a 28-yard field goal from the backup kicker, Marcus Trout. Elon scores a touchdown to take the lead with under 5 minutes left in the game. The score went in favor of the Phenix 37-31. The Cats had a good drive going until, with under a minute left in the game, Isaac Lee threw an interception, and after the review, it was ruled an interception. The Catamounts ended up falling short in the end of the fourth quarter, resulting in a 31-37 score.
“We’re still just not making the plays that help you win football games in crucial situations,” Head Coach Kerwin Bell said during the press conference after the game. “The defense really stretched the field a lot on us and threw some deep balls down the field. I thought we won most of those battles, which was good. Had a couple of interference calls. But I thought for the most part, especially the second half, I thought we played that well. A lot of crucial mistakes that we’ve got to correct and make sure we get ready for our conference next week.”
WCU is now 0-3 for the season.
“You don’t want to be number three, but we’ve learned a lot,” Bell said. “We’ve grown a lot as a football team, and now we’re on our season, right? For us to make the playoffs and to go try to make a run, you’ve got to win your conference, and next week’s starting that. We are a team in progress, and I think we’ve progressed in the last three weeks. Now we’ve got to show that next week.”
WCU played 2 quarterbacks, but Isaac Lee played the majority of the game. Lee threw for 132 yards and had 38 rushing yards. Most of the passing yards went to James Tyre. Tyre had 87 receiving yards as well as 62 rushing yards. For the defense, Jordan Thompson led the way with 11 tackles.
Despite the rocky end to the game, the atmosphere was still electric in E.J Whitmire. With the 14th annual Freshman run, alumni returning to the field for the game, and high school band students joining the Pride of the Mountains marching band on the field, it was a game that captivated attention for the whole run.
“My favorite part of game day atmosphere is the energy and excitement in the crowd, like feeling the stadium come alive when we score,” said freshman cheerleader Arianna Kheel.
Pride of The Mountains Marching band members also love the game day atmosphere, and are a big draw for attendance to the games.
“I really love the way WCU truly feels like a family on a game day,” said sophomore Pride of the Mountains member Levi Glesias. “Whether you’re an alumni, a current student, or someone looking to attend, you all feel the sense of pride in each other and the school.”
Despite the results of the game, optimism is still in the air for the upcoming games.
Conference play starts for the Catamounts next week, with WCU hosting Samford on Sept. 20. which is also the family weekend. The game starts at 2:30 p.m. If you are not able to come you can listen live on ESPN+.
