Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Turnovers
Time of Poss.
(PITTSBURGH, Pa.) – The Carnegie Mellon University football team entertained Waynesburg University in the Eighth Annual Cindy Lackner Memorial game on Saturday night and walked away with a 24-3 victory on the turf at Gesling Stadium. Carnegie Mellon is now 5-1 overall and 4-1 in Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) play. Waynesburg moves to 1-5 and 1-4.
Carnegie Mellon held the Yellow Jackets to 122 yards of total offense while allowing only 31 yards on the ground. The Tartans finished with 296 yards, with 275 coming by way of the ground.
Junior Luke Bikulege (Greer, S.C./St. Joseph's Catholic) led the Tartans rushing attack with a career-best 93 yards on 16 carries and two touchdowns. Senior Chris Haas (Coronado, Calif./Coronado) finished with 75 yards rushing on 12 carries while junior quarterback JD Dayhuff (Westerville, Ohio/Olentangy Orange) ended the night with 68 yards on nine carries.
The Cardinal and Gray defense totaled 11.0 tackles for a loss including four sacks. Senior Michael Lohmeier (Clarendon Hills, Ill./Hinsdale Central) turned in a career day with 11 tackles, six solo, 4.0 tackles for a loss with 2.0 sacks. The senior moved into seventh place on the school's all-time sack list and now has 14.5 for his career.
Waynesburg controlled the ball for most of the first quarter, but managed just three points off the foot of Mike Ryhal. The senior's 32-yard field goal capped off a 16-play, 61-yard drive that took 9:14 off the clock and gave the Yellow Jackets the lead with 3:24 to play in the quarter.
Carnegie Mellon knotted the score at 3-3 halfway through the second quarter when junior placekicker Josh Lyons (Sherman Oaks, Calif./Harvard-Westlake School) connected on a 26-yard field goal. Lyons' kick ended a 10-play, 33-yard drive for the Tartans.
The Tartans took the opening drive of the second half and marched 72 yards on 11 plays resulting in the first of Bikulege's touchdown runs. The junior took it in from six yards out to make the score 10-3 with 9:41 to play in the third quarter.
Six minutes later, senior defensive back Thomas Polutchko (Southborough, Mass./Algonquin Regional) intercepted Mason Schrenker and returned it 17 yards for a touchdown. The extra point by Lyons sailed through the uprights to give the Tartans a 17-3 edge. It marks Polutchko's third career pick six and fourth straight season the Tartans have recorded an interception for a touchdown.
On the Tartans first possession in the fourth quarter, Bikulege ended the scoring with his second touchdown run of the game. This time the junior took it in from 15 yards out to make the score 24-3.
Carnegie Mellon will travel to Bethany College on Saturday, October 19 for a 4:00 p.m. kick against the Bison for the Tartans final road contest of the season. The Cardinal and Gray will then return home on Saturday, October 26 against Thiel for the start of three straight at Gesling Stadium to close the season.