Tigers Advance to NCAA Quarterfinals
A week after winning a dramatic overtime game after the longest road trip in Wittenberg football's storied history, the Tigers made a much shorter trip and once again came up with a gem, dominating host Thomas More College, 41-0.
| A week after winning a dramatic overtime game after the longest road trip in Wittenberg football's storied history, the Tigers made a much shorter trip and once again came up with a gem, dominating host Thomas More College, 41-0. The win advanced the Tigers to an NCAA Division III quarterfinal match-up opposite No. 1 ranked Mount Union College in Alliance, Ohio for the third time in the last four years.
The Tigers made a statement against the Saints, the second seed in the North Region bracket after finishing their regular season independent schedule with a perfect 10-0 mark. Wittenberg had 22 first downs to Thomas More's seven, rolled up 303 rushing yards to TMC's 99 and recorded just the third NCAA Division III playoff shutout in the program's storied history. The scoring started slowly as sophomore kicker Conrad Hindert (Terrace Park, Ohio/Mariemont)booted a 30-yard field goal. The rout started in the second 15 minutes as the Tigers put together a pair of impressive drives, one at the beginning of the frame and one at the end, to move out to a commanding 17-0 halftime advantage. Junior tailback Daniel Grove (Uhrichsville, Ohio/Claymont), who posted his sixth consecutive 100-yard rushing game, struck paydirt with 11:33 remaining on a 20-yard run, and senior wide receiver Michael Aljancic (Louisville, Ohio/Louisville) scored on an acrobatic13-yard catch and run with 36 seconds left in the half. |
| Freshman fullback Raymar Hampshire (Lima, Ohio/Elida), who posted a career-high 55 yards on nine carries in the game, pushed the lead to 24-0 on a 16-yard scoring run to start the third quarter. Aljancic then added a 20-yard touchdown reception on a perfectly thrown pass from junior quarterback Greg Cornett (Franklin, Ohio/Franklin) on the next possession.
In the fourth quarter, Hindert added a 34-yard field goal, made possible by a fumble recovery by senior defensive tackle Michael Houck (Cincinnati, Ohio/Colerain) deep in Saint territory, and then junior tailback Jason Stephan (Brookville, Ohio/Brookville) capped the scoring with a four-yard TD with 4:39 left on the clock. Grove finished the day with 164 yards on 22 carries, while Hampshire chipped in with 55 and Stephan added 40 on 12 carries. Cornett was stellar again, going 15-of-22 for 172 yards and two touchdowns without being sacked or throwing an interception. Aljancic led all receivers with 61 yards on six catches, while sophomore Skip Ivery (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison) was big with 58 yards on four catches and Grove had three receptions for 35 yards. Defensively, the Tigers dominated. Senior defensive end Tim Daoust (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic) had three sacks, junior linebacker Ryan Gresham (Columbus, Ohio/Eastmoor) topped the team with 5.5 tackles and senior safetyJohn Hauser (Columbus, Ohio/Bishop Hartley) finished with 3.5 tackles and his fifth interception of the season. The Tigers now must make the trip to No. 1 ranked Mt. Union for the third time in four years. The defending national champion Purple Raiders stung Wittenberg 21-19 en route to the 1998 title and then converted three first-half turnovers in last year's 32-15 NCAA quarterfinal victory as they steamed toward a fifth national crown since 1993. Mount Union is 11-0 and is coming off a 32-7 rout of No. 4 seed Augustana last Saturday at home. |