WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – West Liberty fought its way back from a three-touchdown deficit here Saturday but Charleston was able to hang on for a 34-26 victory in a mutual season finale on Senior Day and Hall of Fame Day at West Family Stadium.
    Despite the Golden Eagles (8-3, 7-3) getting an NCAA Division II season-high 355 rushing yards from TB Tyreik Mcallister, Coach Roger Waialae's Hilltoppers (5-6, 4-6) scored back-to-back touchdowns in the fourth quarter to turn a 31-13 deficit into a 31-26 nail-biter with more than 4 minutes remaining.
    The West Liberty defense stuffed Mcallister on first down and a holding penalty followed by an incompletion left UC facing third-and-18 from its own 26 with 3:01 on the clock.
    The Golden Eagles rolled the dice with QB Brant Grisel heaving a deep throw to rangy WR Mike Strachan and the 6-5 Strachan – the nation's second-leading receiver with more than 1,300 yards and 19 TDs – outleaped two WLU defenders to make a circus catch, tumbling to the turf with a first down at the Hilltopper 28.
    Three snaps later, UC's Tim McCutchen kicked a 42-yard field goal for a 34-26 lead with less than two minutes to play and West Liberty failed to move the sticks on its final possession.
    "We had limited their passing for the most part even though Mcallister had a great game running the ball but we had clawed our way out of the hole and given ourselves a chance," Waialae said. "It came down to a big-time receiver making a big-time play with the game on the line."
    Charleston scored on three straight possessions without the Hilltopper offense taking the field midway through the first half.
    After Strachan opened the scoring with a 46-yard TD catch at 4:29 of the first quarter, the Golden Eagles recovered an onside kick and drove down for another quick score before the end of the quarter. The WLU return team misplayed the ensuing kickoff and Charleston recovered at the Hilltopper 34, setting up a 19-yard McCutchen field goal for a 17-0 lead early in the second quarter.
    West Liberty hit the board with a 9-yard Quincy Wimbish touchdown run but the speedy Mcallister raced 65 yards to paydirt on the very next snap and Charleston carried that 24-6 lead into halftime.
    Hilltopper senior Christian Rita caught a 5-yard TD pass from Zach Phillips to make it 24-13 at 9:17 of the third quarter but Mcallister – who finished with 355 yards on a staggering 39 carries – broke off a 40-yard touchdown run for a 31-13 UC lead after three quarters.
    Rita sparked the West Liberty comeback with a 7-yard touchdown catch less than 90 seconds into the fourth quarter. He also had three big catches for 70 yards on an 80-yard WLU scoring drive which ended with Isaiah Robinson's 4-yard TD grab, making it a one-score game with 4:10 to play.
    "We definitely saw on tape that their defensive backs were really aggressive in coverage," said Rita, who finished with a WLU season-high 10 catches for 128 yards and two TDs. "Our receivers coach was pushing us all week to work back to be aggressive working back to the ball on comebacks and back shoulder throws and that's what we did."
    Phillips completed 17-of-40 passes for 208 yards and 3 touchdowns with no interceptions. Robinson backed Rita with 4 catches for 52 yards and a score but UC held the Black and Gold to just 5 net rushing yards on 25 attempts.
    Grisel completed just 8-of-21 passes for 171 yards and one touchdown while throwing a season-high 3 interceptions – two of them in the West Liberty end zone. The Hilltopper defense also came up with a big goal line stand in the second half as the visitors converted just 3-of-14 third downs all afternoon.
    Senior safety Logan Deri – one of 15 seniors playing his final collegiate game – entered the WLU record books as only the sixth Hilltopper in school history to post more than 300 tackles in his career. Deri's 9 stops on Saturday put him at 301.
    "It meant a lot to me to wear the Black and Gold and I'll always be thankful for the opportunity," Deri said. "The milestone was great but to me it's just a testimony to the coaches and teammates who put me in position to make those plays," Deri said. "It meant a lot to me to showcase my talents in the Black and Gold. I'll always be thankful for the opportunity. I can't believe it went so fast."
    Waialae said he appreciated the efforts of this senior group on and off the field, noting that this is his 15^th group of seniors as a head coach.
    "All my seniors are special to me but this group stands out because of their hard work and dedication on the field and in the classroom," Waialae said. "Four of these guys have already graduated and the other 11 are all on track. I'm proud to have been their coach."
  Charleston                            14  10  7    3 – 34
West Liberty                           0    6  7  13 – 26      UC: Strachan 46 pass from Grisel (McCutchen kick), 4:29
     UC: Street 3 run (McCutchen kick), 1:31      UC: FG McCutchen 19, 13:12
     WLU: Wimbish 9 run (kick blocked), 9:15
     UC: Mcallister 65 run (McCutchen kick), 9:00      WLU: Rita 5 pass from Z.Phillips (Rozanc kick), 9:17
     UC: Mcallister 40 run (McCutchen kick), 6:32      WLU: Rita 7 pass from Z.Phillips (pass failed), 13:41
     WLU: Robinson 4 pass from Z.Phillips (Rozanc kick), 4:10
     UC: FG McCutchen 42, 1:53
A: 1,799      RUSHING: Charleston 53-361; Mcallister 39-355; Street 8-22; Team 2-(-2); Grisel 3-(-15). West Liberty 25-5; Wimbish 16-11; Frisby 2-8; Farmer 1-0; Z.Phillips 6-(-14)
     PASSING: Charleston 8-21-171-3td-3x (all by Grisel); West Liberty 17-14-208-3td-0x (all by Z.Phillips)
     RECEIVING: Charleston 8-171; Strachan 3-128; Ross 2-28; Kauffeld 1-9; Morgan 1-5; Warren 1-1. West Liberty 17-208; Rita 10-128; Robinson 4-52; Durbin 2-24; Cole 1-4.
     First downs: Charleston 23, West Liberty 13
     Fumbles: Charleston 3-1, West Liberty 2-2
     Penalties: Charleston 9-78, West Liberty 10-95
     Time of Possession: Charleston 34:40, West Liberty 25:20