Chicago, Ill. – The fifth-ranked Wheaton football team defeated North Park 58-27 on Saturday afternoon in the first road contest of the 2021 season for the Thunder. Wheaton improves to 2-1 overall and 1-1 in CCIW play. The Vikings fall to 0-3 on the season, with an 0-2 record in conference action.

The Wheaton offense amassed 567 total yards today, with 286 rushing yards and 281 passing yards. The Thunder offense made it inside the Vikings' 20-yard line six times today and scored on all six red zone opportunities the team had. North Park tallied 287 yards of total offense, with 179 passing yards and 108 rushing yards.

Thunder quarterback Luke Anthony (PICTURED LEFT) completed 16 of his 21 passing attempts (76.2%) today. He threw for 269 yards, with three passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown. Matthew Tucker caught five passes for 80 yards, while Adam Terrini had four catches for 49 yards with two TD's. Spencer Peterson caught three passes for 67 yards with a touchdown catch.

Running back Giovanni Weeks led Wheaton's ground game with 136 rushing yards on 18 carries and two trips into the end zone. Sam Singleton ran for 103 yards on eight carries with one touchdown run.

Linebacker Wyatt Lee (PICTURED RIGHT) led the Thunder defense with nine total tackles, including one tackle for loss (-1 yard). Ryan Schwartz registered seven total tackles, including a quarterback sack (-1 yards). Defensive linemen River Shindledecker and Jake Holaday each contributed five total tackles for Wheaton.

The Vikings surprised the Thunder on the opening kickoff of the game with an onside kick. North Park recovered the kick and turned the successful surprise into a three-play touchdown drive. The ensuing PAT kick failed as the hosts' touchdown gave NPU a 6-0 lead. Wheaton gained good yardage in its first offensive drive of the game. Senior Sam Singleton had a 23-yard run in the drive and Anthony connected with Spencer Peterson for a 24-yard pass. The drive culminated with a four-yard touchdown run by Weeks. Wheaton converted the PAT kick that followed and gained a 7-6 lead on the Vikings with 11:35 left in the first quarter. The Thunder defense stalled the Vikings' offense on the drive that followed Weeks' touchdown as the Wheaton offense again took the field. The Key play of Wheaton's next drive was a 52-yard pass from Anthony to Weeks to put Wheaton on the Vikings' 13-yard line. Weeks scampered into the end zone for a 13-yard run on the very next play as Wheaton extended its lead to 14-6 with 3:07 remaining in the first quarter. North Park punted late in the first quarter and the return was fumbled by Wheaton and recovered by the Vikings. North Park scored on the first play of the drive that followed with a 26-yard touchdown pass to trim Wheaton's lead to 14-13 with 1:12 remaining in the opening quarter.

On the second Thunder drive of the second quarter, Anthony connected with Adam Terrini for a 28-yard touchdown pass. The PAT kick was good as Wheaton held a 20-13 lead with 10:23 remaining in the second quarter. On Wheaton's next drive, Anthony hit Spencer Peterson for a 28-yard touchdown pass to extend the guests' lead to 27-13 with 5:47 remaining in the first half. Wheaton methodically moved down the field on the final drive of the first half, culminating with a one-yard touchdown run on a QB sneak by Anthony. Anthony's touchdown gave the Thunder a 34-13 lead at halftime.

The Wheaton defense stymied the NPU offense on the Vikings' opening drive of the third quarter. Caleb Grotelueschen returned the punt 40 yards to the North Park 20-yard line. Anthony connected with Terrini for a two-yard touchdown pass to increase Wheaton's edge to 41-13 with 11:58 remaining in the third quarter. On Wheaton's next offensive drive, Weeks broke free for a 30-yard touchdown run as Wheaton led 48-13 with 8:31 left in the third. Wheaton's next drive ended with a one-yard touchdown run for the Thunder a quarterback run as Wheaton's lead increased to 55-13 with 5:08 remaining in the third quarter. The key Thunder play in that drive was a 38-yard run for running back Sam Singleton. With four seconds remaining in the third quarter, Tommy Gallagher kicked a 21-yard field goal for the guests to increase Wheaton's lead to 58-13.

North Park scored twice in the fourth quarter to cut into Wheaton's lead. The Vikings had a two-yard touchdown run and 12-yard touchdown pass to account for the 58-27 final score.
 
Wheaton travels to St. Louis next Saturday for a 6:00 p.m. kickoff at WashU.