GREENVILLE, Pa. -- The Mercer County Cup is staying in Grove City!

Saturday afternoon, the Grove City College football team held host Thiel to 45 total yards and three first downs as the Wolverines rolled to a 56-0 victory at Alumni Stadium in the 37th Mercer County Cup game. Grove City concludes the regular season 7-3 overall and 6-3 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference.

The Grove City recorded two sacks, caused three turnovers and forced Thiel to punt 10 times. Meanwhile, the Grove City offense piled up 481 total yards and 28 first downs. 

Grove City produced a pair of 100-yard rushers on the way to 356 rushing yards as a team. Junior Clayton Parrish (Mercer, Pa./West Middlesex) ran for 160 yards and five touchdowns on 26 carries. He now has 24 rushing touchdowns this season.

Senior running back Zach Trusky (Carnegie, Pa./Bishop Canevin) added 107 yards and a score on 15 carries. Freshman running back Shay Aitken (McDonald, Pa./South Fayette) added a pair of touchdown runs, the first two scores of his collegiate career.

Parrish scored on a seven-yard run with 7:34 left in the first quarter to open the scoring. His 10-yard scoring jaunt with 1:26 left in the first half pushed Grove City's lead to 14-0 by halftime.

The Wolverines then broke open the game in the third quarter as Parrish scored three times in a four-minute span. Aitken returned the second half kickoff to the Thiel 47. Six plays later, Parrish scored from 14 yards out. Senior kicker Nick Morrow (Moon Township, Pa./Moon) kicked the third of his eight extra points, giving Grove City a 21-0 lead.

Junior linebacker Ryan Fleming (Bridgeville, Pa./South Fayette) then sacked Thiel quarterback Owen Trumbull, forcing a fumble. Freshman end Bryce Spolnik (McDonald, Pa./South Fayette) returned the fumble 11 yards to the Thiel 6. Two plays later, Parrish scored on a six-yard run, boosting the lead to 28-0.

Thiel again fumbled on its next offensive play as senior safety Patrick Mark (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla./Wellington) stripped Thiel wide receiver Jake Reddick and senior linebacker Parker Kilgore (Glenshaw, Pa./Shaler) returned the fumble to the Thiel 20. Parrish scored on a 10-yard sprint four plays later.

Trusky scored on a three-yard run with 13:23 left in the fourth quarter. Aitken scored on runs of four and nine yards, respectively, later in the period.

Senior quarterback Josh Ehst (Douglassville, Pa./Daniel Boone) completed 10 of 19 passes for 102 yards. Senior wide receiver Cody Gustafson (Newburg, Pa./Shippensburg) had four catches for 46 yards. Sophomore wide receiver Scott Fraser (Butler, Pa./Knoch) caught four passes for 37 yards and sophomore Ryan Heckathorn (Beaver Falls, Pa./Blackhawk) added three receptions for 35 yards. 

Spolnik also had a sack for the Wolverines. Fleming also recovered a fumble. Senior linebacker Nik Grabiec (Newport, Pa./Newport) recorded a team-high six tackles, including two for loss. Senior defensive end R.J. Debo (New Brighton, Pa./New Brighton) matched Grabiec with six tackles.

Grove City now leads the Cup series 25-12.

The Wolverines will await a potential ECAC bowl invitation. ECAC bowl pairings will be announced Monday afternoon.