BLOOMINGTON, Ill. -- "Seniors' Day" for the No. 22 Illinois Wesleyan football team was spoiled by a 40-27 loss to No. 4 ranked Wheaton College at Tucci Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 7.

The Titans are now 7-2 overall and 4-2 in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin while the Thunder, who got their first win in Bloomington since 2002, remained spotless at 9-0 overall and 6-0 in the CCIW with at least a share of the conference title and the league's automatic qualifier into the NCAA Division III playoffs.

Illinois Wesleyan had 292 yards of total offense (133 rushing, 185 passing) while Wheaton amassed 406 yards (214 passing, 192 rushing). The Titans showed their resilience, rallying back from a 20-0 first quarter deficit to eventually tie the game at 27-27 at the end of the third quarter. But 13 final period points by Wheaton sealed the game for the visitors.

IWU's first offensive drive in the final quarter resulted in a punt and gave Wheaton field position at the IWU 40-yard line. On the Thunder's first play, junior quarterback Andrew Bowers hit senior Andrew Lindquist on a 40-yard TD pass with 10:23 left to stake the Thunder to a 34-27 lead. Lindquist finished with five grabs for 66 yards and two TDs and Bowers was 16 of 24 for 210 passing yards and two scores while rushing for 77 yards and a score. Danny Puknaitis rushed for two touchdowns and had 92 yards on 24 carries.

Illinois Wesleyan sophomore quarterback Jack Warner completed 15 of 35 passes for 185 yards and two touchdowns, both to junior Austin Wagner, who finished with four receptions for 124 yards.

Junior Maurice Shoemaker-Gilmore had a team-high 97 yards with a 35-yard TD run on 15 carries. No other Titan had double figures in rushing yards.

Defensively, senior Ben Bouie made the most of his "Senior Day" leading the Titans with six total tackles and making two interceptions. Seniors William Hargrove and Kevin Slawkowski along with junior linebacker Sean Garvey also accounted for six tackles each. Junior linebacker Luke Roth made a fumble recovery and had three total tackles.

Also for his "Senior Day", kicker Michael Kelley made three extra points and hit field goals of 30 and 31 yards. His nine total points puts him at 217 in his career, third best in IWU history and the leading kick scorer. His 140 point after touchdown kicks is a school career record and his 25 field goals is third in an IWU career.

Wheaton senior linebacker Adam Dansdill made 11 total tackles with a 13-yard quarterback sack and Tyler Sigler made a "pick six" interception return for 49 yards and a score.

What's Next?
Illinois Wesleyan closes out its regular season with a game at North Park (2-7, 1-5 CCIW) in Chicago next Saturday, Nov. 14. Gametime is 1 p.m ... The Vikings were 14-6 losers at Carthage on Saturday ... Illinois Wesleyan has a 52-3 lead in the series against North Park, 31-0 in Bloomington and 21-3 in Chicago. IWU has won 29 straight games against North Park, losing last in 1985.