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Valparaiso University

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Blocked PAT
41
Winner Dayton DAY 5-1 , 3-0
10
Valparaiso VAL 1-5 , 0-2
Winner
Dayton DAY
5-1 , 3-0
41
Final
10
Valparaiso VAL
1-5 , 0-2
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
DAY Dayton 14 27 0 0 41
VAL Valparaiso 0 0 0 10 10

Game Recap: Football |

Football Falls to Dayton

The Valparaiso University football team returned to Brown Field for the first time in over a month on Saturday, falling 41-10 to Dayton in the first home Pioneer Football League contest of 2025. The Beacons outscored the Flyers 10-0 in the second half.
 
How It Happened
  • Dayton scored two touchdowns in the opening quarter including a pick six. Valpo moved the ball on its first drive of the day, including a 10-yard catch by Michal Rumoro (Genova, Ill. / Genova Community) who made his first career start at running back, but turned it over on downs on a fourth-and-5 at the Dayton 40.
  • The Beacons had another solid drive late in the first quarter including a 16-yard pass to Jay Melchiori (Marengo, Ohio / Highland [Marietta]), but that drive ended with a missed field goal.
  • The Flyers added 27 second-quarter points, although Valpo special teams came up with a blocked kick with Alex Goworowski (Chicago, Ill. / Saint Patrick) and Matt Molnar (Avon Lake, Ohio / Saint Edward) both right there turning away a PAT try. The Beacons punted four times and lost a fumble in the second stanza.
  • Valpo had two turnovers and two punts on its third-quarter drives, but the defense did good work in that period. The first Dayton drive of the second half was a three-and-out, and the second was a four-and-out featuring a big stop by Dre Wilborn (Chicago, Ill. / Westinghouse [Georgetown]) on fourth-and-1 at the Valpo 32. The third Dayton drive of the third quarter was another three-and-out.
  • The Beacons forced their second turnover on downs of the second half when O.C. Nurse (Dumfries, Va. / Forest Park [Marietta]) had a pass breakup on fourth-and-2 from the Valpo 16 early in the third quarter.
  • The hosts found paydirt for the first time in the game when Brayden Welch (Oregon City, Oregon / Oregon City) caught a 25-yard pass from Rowan Keefe (Park Ridge, Ill. / Maine South) for a touchdown to make it 41-7 with 9:24 left in the third quarter. That finished off a six-play, 84-yard drive that saw Dayton commit several penalties on a day where otherwise flags were few and far between against either team.
  • Valpo forced another punt, then added to the point total on Luke Scoma's 27-yard field goal with 5:50 remaining, finishing off an 82-yard drive highlighted by a 62-yard connection between Keefe and Amir Simmons (Baltimore, Md. / Gahanna Lincoln). That field goal occurred in the closing seconds of the game.
Inside the Game
  • Redshirt freshman linebacker Anthony Feltrinelli (Westfield, Ind. / Westfield) notched nine tackles to share the team lead, lifting his season total to a team-high 44 tackles. This marked his second-highest total of the season and the third time in six games that he's had at least eight.
  • Redshirt sophomore Nic Lendino (Naperville, Ill. / Neuqua Valley) tied for the team lead with nine tackles. He is up to 43 for the season, second on the team, 21 of which have come in the last two games. He has five stops or more in five straight contests and at least eight on three occasions this season. He is two tackles away from reaching 100 for his career.
  • Goworowski recorded seven tackles, marking a career high.
  • Valpo played without several key players due to injuries, including starting running back Michael Mansaray, starting linebacker Max Samuel, starting offensive lineman Dan Theiss and key wide receiver Devin Yeats, among others.
  • This marked the first time Valpo blocked a PAT since Sept. 23, 2023, when Kurt Kessen turned one away against Marist.
  • Simmons' reception was the first of his career and he led the team with 63 receiving yards, all on the one catch.
  • Melchiori had a team-high five grabs, while Rumoro had four to go along with eight carries for 36 yards. Melchiori's five receptions marked a season high as he returned to the catch column after none over the previous two games.
  • It was a clean game from a penalty perspective with each team committing just three infractions. The first half was entirely flag free.
  • Scoma improved to 12-for-13 on PATs this season and had his fourth made field goal in six tries.
  • The two teams were almost identical in yards gained through the air, with Dayton holding a slight 210-207 advantage. The Flyers notched 371 yards of total offense to Valpo's 311.
Postgame Press Conference
Click here for postgame press conference.
 
Up Next
Valpo (1-5, 0-2 PFL) will visit St. Thomas next week for a 1 p.m. kickoff on Midco Sports Plus.
 
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