#1 Mount Union Posts Third Straight Shutout
ALLIANCE, Ohio -- No. 1 ranked Mount Union returned a punt and a kickoff for a touchdown, gained nearly 500 yards of offense and the defense posted its third straight shutout in a 54-0 victory over Ohio Northern Saturday at Mount Union Stadium.
The Purple Raiders (4-0, 2-0 OAC) won their 67th straight regular season game and have outscored their opposition this season 208-7.
Mount Union senior Blair Skilliter (Curtice/Genoa) started the game at corner back, ran for two touchdowns off the bench as a running back and returned the second half kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown.
Fellow senior T.J. Lattimore (Maple Heights/Maple Heights) also ran for two touchdowns as he rushed for a game-high 79 yards on 13 carries.
Sophomore quarterback Kevin Burke (Westlake/Lakewood St. Edward) threw a 48-yard touchdown pass to senior Jasper Collins (Geneva, N.Y./Geneva) as he went 16-of-22 for 238 yards and directed an offense that had 493 yards.
Senior Chris Denton (Plantation, Fla./South Plantation) had five catches for 71 yards and had his third punt return for a touchdown this season as he took one back 60 yards.
The defense continued its dominant start to the season as they held Ohio Northern (1-3, 1-2 OAC) to just 41 total yards in the first half and only 147 for the game including just 24 yards rushing. Senior linebacker Jack LaForce (Vermillion/Vermillion) had a career-high nine tackles to pace the unit.
After Ohio Northern went three-and-out to start the game, Denton ran the punt back 60 yards for the first points of the game.
Lattimore finished 77 and 82 yard drives with touchdowns from three and two yards out as the Raiders went up 20-0 after the first quarter.
Midway through the second quarter, Lattimore lost his helmet on a play and by rule had to leave the field for the next play which Skilliter came in and scampered 15 yards for a score to make it 27-0.
Senior Tyler Almeida (Elyria/Elyria) then matched his career long field goal with a 37-yarder which made the score 30-0 at the break.
Skilliter then took the opening kickoff of the second half back 95 yards and three minutes later Burke hit Collins on a 48-yard strike to extend the margin to 44-0.
Skilliter tacked on a five-yard touchdown run later in the third and Almeida hit a 25-yard field goal on the first play of the fourth quarter to finish the scoring.
Mount Union goes back on the road next week for a 1:30 pm game Saturday at Wilmington.
