Wheeling, W. Va. – After taking a tough loss the week before, the Wheeling University Football team picked up a bounce back victory as they took down Concord on Saturday 26-21. It was a game led by defense and special teams and the defensive effort was rewarded as the Mountain East Conference (MEC) released their weekly Player of the Week awards, presented by the Healthplan. Redshirt sophomore defensive back Kameron Reynolds was named the MEC's Defensive Player of the Week after causing two of the three turnovers that led the Cardinals to victory.
Reynolds was the Cardinals second leading tackler on the day, finishing with seven total tackles, three solo and four assisted on the day. However, it was his work in the turnover battle that earned him the award, where he finished with both a forced fumble and an interception in the effort. Both turnovers were the first of the season for Reynolds, who has been a force in both the run and pass game for the Cardinals. He is the Cardinal's second leading tackler this season, with 81.0 total tackles, while also adding an interception and three pass break-ups in the passing game. Reynolds is one of two Cardinals to sit in the top five in tackles in the conference, and one of three Cardinals in the top 10 in that category. However, his biggest impact came in the turnover margin, where he set the Cardinals up in strong field goal percentage.
His first turnover of the day came on Concord's second drive as they set up second and eight at their own 38-yard line. Reynolds would jump in front of a Tyler Mizzell pass, setting the Cardinals up with good field position. It resulted in their second field goal of the day, a 25-yarder that made it a 6-0 score before the end of the quarter. His second turnover would come on the final Concord play of the half as he forced a fumble with just 11 seconds remaining on the clock. The Mountain Lions completed a pass over the middle and Reynolds knocked the ball lose. The Cardinals would jump on the lose football and one play late they headed into the locker room with a 13-7 lead.
Reynolds is the 17th Wheeling University student-athlete to earn conference Player of the Week honors this season, taking home honors for the first time in his career. He is the eigthth Wheeling Football player to take home the award, joining teammates Carter Blake, Brett Jackson, Day Day Bates, Ade Olanegan, Leonard Sherrod, and Conor Fitzpatrick in earning honors. The last Wheeling student-athlete to be honored was Wheeling Men's Swimmer Felix Norlin, who took home Male Swimmer of the Week honors back on October 13th.
The Wheeling University Football team returns to action on Saturday, November 8th, when they travel to Glenville State with kick-off at 1 PM.
