Wheaton, Ill. – An unstoppable offensive performance and a stingy defensive effort combined to give the Wheaton College football team a comprehensive 61-13 Homecoming victory over Carroll University on Saturday.
The Thunder, ranked 17th in the latest D3football.com poll and T-16th by the AFCA, improved to 2-1 on the season and 2-0 in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW). The Pioneers fell to 0-3 on the year (0-2 in CCIW play).
In its first home game of the season, Wheaton seized control from the opening series and never let go of the momentum. After a quick three-and-out by the visitors, the Thunder were on the scoreboard a mere 80 seconds later. Running back Matt Crider gashed the defense with a 54-yard touchdown run. The subsequent two-point conversion failed as the score stood at 6-0.
Despite losing a fumble on its next possession, Wheaton quickly made amends with an interception three plays later, courtesy of defensive back Colin Moore (PICTURED LEFT)). Forty-five seconds later, quarterback Seamus O'Connell flung an 18-yard touchdown to wide receiver Caleb Titherington.
Carroll's next drive stalled immediately and an eight-yard punt put the Thunder in prime position to score again. The offense obliged as running back Trent Gabriele plowed up the middle for a one-yard score to make it 20-0.
A 78-yard Wheaton drive ate up almost half of the second quarter and resulted in kicker Mateo Jesch converting a 26-yard field goal. The home side then put on another offensive clinic in the final minutes of the half with a 10-play, 72-yard scoring drive capped by O'Connell's 20-yard touchdown toss to running back Malachi Jones. The lead stood at 30-0 as both teams went to the locker room at halftime.
The second half was more of the same – the Thunder marched down the field with impunity and scored five times on six possessions. The hosts only punted once all afternoon and rolled up 34 total first downs compared to nine for Carroll.
The Pioneers broke up the shutout with an interception in Wheaton territory that led to a 30-yard touchdown pass. The Thunder answered immediately by going 75 yards on 11 plays to push the advantage back to 37-7. It was Jones reaching the end zone once again, this time on a 12-yard burst up the middle.
O'Connell (PICTURED RIGHT) moved the sticks with his arm on the next possession and then kept it himself for a three-yard touchdown run to push the lead to 44-7. That would mark the end of his day. The senior racked up 274 yards through the air, completing 23 of 35 passes with two touchdowns and one interception. O'Connell also ran the ball eight times for 33 yards and a touchdown.
Finnley Doriot took over under center and aired it out for several big plays. The sophomore went 4-for-8 with 112 yards and two touchdowns in the second half.
At the start of the fourth quarter, Jesch converted his second field goal of the day by splitting the uprights from 39 yards out.
Wheaton was back in Carroll territory on the next drive and faced a fourth-and-two scenario. The home team converted as Doriot tossed a 31-yard touchdown.
The Pioneers scored on the first play of their next possession and went on to recover an onside kick. However, Wheaton's defense snagged an interception to set up the last scoring drive of the contest. Doriot connected with wide receiver Ryan Kenyon for a 16-yard touchdown to account for the 61-13 final margin.
The Thunder offense rolled up 638 total yards (7.6 yards per play) and went 9-for-13 on third-down situations. They passed for 386 yards and ran for 252 more (6.1 yards per carry). Tight end Ben Juska (PICTURED LEFT) hauled in a game-high 10 catches for 125 yards. Senior Seth Kortenhoeven compiled five receptions for 73 yards. Wideout Luke Crawford made a 52-yard catch, and Titherington tallied four receptions for 42 yards and a touchdown.
Wheaton's backfield featured five different players with at least 20 rushing yards. Crider posted 98 rushing yards on 10 carries with one touchdown. Jones contributed 54 yards on nine carries and two total touchdowns.
The Thunder pass defense was stout throughout the afternoon. Carroll's quarterbacks only completed 30 percent of their passes (9 of 30) for 145 yards and threw two interceptions. 83 of those yards came on one play with four minutes left in the game. The Pioneers only converted 3 of 16 third-down opportunities and were limited to 242 total yards.
Wheaton's defense collected six tackles for loss, with one sack provided by defensive end Peter Johanik (PICTURED RIGHT). Linebacker Zeke Harris led the team with nine tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss. Moore nabbed an interception to go with six tackles and a tackle for loss, while Zac Schloemer also picked off one Carroll pass. Linebacker Caleb Coburn was responsible for six tackles, 0.5 tackle for a loss and two pass breakups.
Wheaton is back in action next Saturday, Oct. 4 with the annual Little Brass Bell game at No. 1-ranked North Central College. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. in Naperville.
