NAPERVILLE, Ill. – The No. 16-ranked Illinois Wesleyan football team was limited to 71 second half yards and no points in a 26-13 loss to No. 5-ranked North Central in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin opener for both clubs at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium in Naperville, Ill., on Saturday, Sept. 16.
This game was the fifth matchup in the past seven years when both teams have been nationally-ranked. The Titans are 2-1 (0-1 CCIW) and the Cardinals are 2-0 (1-0 CCIW) and defeated IWU for the eighth straight year.
After falling behind 10-0, the Titans got on the scoreboard with 33 seconds left in the first quarter on a 6-yard run by sophomore
Brandon Bauer. The score was 10-6 when
Anthony Sciarini's extra point kick was blocked.
A 26-yard Cardinal field goal made the score 13-6 before Illinois Wesleyan tied the game on a 4-yard pass from Bauer to senior tight end
Andrew Apel to cap an 11-play drive. Sciarini's kick tied the match at 13-13, which is where it stood at halftime.
North Central had the only scoring of the third quarter and led 20-13 heading into the fourth and Liam Crotty tacked on a 33-yard field goal with 9:58 to play in the game. Crotty, who tied a school game record with four field goals, hit a 39-yarder with 5:22 remaining to stake the Cardinals to the final 26-13 advantage.
Bauer completed 12 of 27 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown with his first two interceptions of the season. Two Bauer TD passes were negated by offensive pass interference calls.
Junior running back
Morgan Alexander rushed for 64 yards on 19 carries to pace the Titans.
Defensively, linebacker
Jordan Hassan led IWU with 15 total tackles, 13 solo, and one tackle for loss.
Josh Akin had eight total tackles while
Trevor Koepke had five stops and
Trevor Staley had five.
North Central quarterback Broc Rutter was 24 of 37 for 226 yards and two touchdowns while running back Austin Breunig had 69 yards on 19 carries.
The Cardinals, who survived nine penalties for 99 yards and lost two fumbles, had 346 yards of total offense on 75 plays while the Titans amassed 244 yards on 60 plays (178 passing and 66 rushing).
What's Next?
Illinois Wesleyan plays at 6 p.m. next Saturday, Sept. 23, as North Park comes to Tucci Stadium in Bloomington. The Vikings are 1-2 overall and 0-1 in the CCIW after a 23-20 home field loss to Elmhurst Saturday.
