GROVE CITY — A 10-game gauntlet of Presidents’ Athletic Conference opponents awaits the Grove City College football team this fall as the Wolverines play their 129th season of intercollegiate football. After an unbalanced conference schedule in 2022, Grove City will play each of the other 10 teams in the 11-team circuit in 2023.
Grove City opens the season Sept. 2 at home when longtime rival Westminster visits Robert E. Thorn Field for a 1 p.m. kickoff. It will be the first time in 126 years that the Grove City football team faces Westminster in the season opener. In the 1897 lidlifter, head coach “Rags” Brown piloted Grove City to a 6-0 win over Westminster. Grove City also opened the 1892 and 1893 seasons against Westminster.
The last five Grove City-Westminster games have been decided by 20 total points.
The Wolverines will then play consecutive road games, starting with a Sept. 9 trip to Waynesburg University. The teams did not meet in 2022 due to the unbalanced schedule. This will be the third straight meeting between the teams in Greene County, as Grove City won at Waynesburg in 2019 (42-24) and in 2021 (38-0).
Grove City will visit Case Western Reserve the following Saturday night for a 7 p.m. kickoff in Cleveland. Grove City edged the Spartans, 14-13, on Homecoming at Thorn Field in 2022.
Grove City returns home for consecutive home games to close out September. Perennial powerhouse Washington & Jefferson visits Thorn Field for the annual night game Sept. 23 at 7 p.m. Seven days later, Grove City hosts defending conference champion Carnegie Mellon at 2 p.m. for Homecoming 2023.
A pair of mid-afternoon starts on the road highlight the first half of the October schedule. The Wolverines visit Geneva for a 3 p.m. kickoff Oct. 7, then play a 4 p.m. game Oct. 14 at Allegheny. Last season, Grove City earned a 44-17 win at Allegheny in the first meeting between the programs as conference rivals.
Grove City closes the home schedule with back-to-back home games on the final two Saturdays of October. Saint Vincent comes to town Oct. 21 for a 1 p.m. kickoff. The Wolverines then host Bethany at 1 p.m. Oct. 28 for Senior Day.
Grove City’s open date falls in Week 10, Nov. 4. The Wolverines return to action Nov. 11 by traveling to Thiel for the 39th Mercer County Cup game. Kickoff will be at noon in Greenville. Grove City has retained possession of the coveted Cup since 2017. The Wolverines lead the Cup series, 26-12.
Eighth-year head coach Andrew DiDonato and staff will welcome approximately 125 hopefuls to campus Aug. 8 for the start of preseason camp.
This is the first season since 2017 in which Grove City will have five home games and five road games in the regular season.
LACROSSE
The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) recognized Grove City College senior men’s lacrosse player Brett Gladstone and sophomore women’s lacrosse player Sarah Jackson as All-ECAC Division III honorees on Thursday.
Gladstone earned First Team All-ECAC at midfielder for the second straight season. Jackson earned First Team All-ECAC distinction at defender after receiving Honorable Mention All-ECAC as a freshman in 2022.
A fifth-year senior, Gladstone earned PAC Offensive Player of the Year this spring after firing in 41 goals this season. He added 24 assists and finished with 65 points, third-best on the team.
In four postseason games, he recorded 13 goals and six assists, including a four-goal performance May 13 in Grove City’s 18-17 overtime win over Swarthmore in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Gladstone scored the game-winner in overtime to give the Wolverines their first-ever NCAA Tournament win.
Gladstone graduated as Grove City’s all-time leader with 217 goals and 291 points. The United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) named Gladstone as an Honorable Mention Division III All-American last week.
Jackson led the Grove City women’s lacrosse team with 37 caused turnovers this season. She also ranked second on the squad with 55 ground balls. Jackson added five goals and a dozen draw controls while playing in all 19 games.
Jackson earned PAC Defensive Player of the Year honors, along with First Team All-PAC distinction. Last week, the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) honored Jackson as an All-Boardwalk Region honoree. She is the first All-Region honoree in program history.