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| UW-Oshkosh and UW-Platteville fought a pitched defensive battle, but the Titans found a way to get Dylan Hecker in the end zone twice in the fourth quarter of a 22-13 victory. Photo by Steve Frommell, d3photography.com |
Wesley showed it was not dead yet, Stevenson continued its unbeaten run and UW-Oshkosh and Mary Hardin-Baylor each won defensive battles in Saturday's Top 25 action.
After No. 5 UW-Oshkosh and No. 7 UW-Platteville traded five field goals in the first three quarters, UW-Oshkosh broke through with two fourth-quarter touchdowns and held on to beat Platteville 22-13. Samuel Herkert missed a chip shot late in the third quarter that would have tied the game at 9-9 for the Pioneers, and Oshkosh reached the end zone on the ensuing drive to go up 15-6. Platteville finally broke through on the next drive to cut the lead to two, but Dylan Hecker ran for his second touchdown and the Titans got a defensive stop to put the game away.
"I liked our offense in the second half coming out and putting some points on the board but we're struggling a little bit, there's no doubt about it," said Oshkosh coach Pat Cerroni. "There's a lot of axniety right now for us. But I'm just happy we won today and we got to live another day."
Wesley jumped out to a 24-3 lead at the half and the Wolverines defense made it stand up as Wesley dumped No. 21 Rowan 24-17. The Profs scored touchdowns on back-to-back drives late in the third and early in the fourth quarter but Rowan got the ball back just one more time and could not convert. Jamar Baynard ran for 98 yards and a touchdown for the Wolverines, while Ben Robinson had 12 tackles, including three and a half tackles for loss, to pace the Wesley defense.
Wesley remained in the mix at the top of the New Jersey Athletic Conference. So did Salisbury, as the No. 22 Sea Gulls ran past Kean 36-14. Ryan Kolb and Connor Canonico combined for 315 rushing yards on 31 carries in the win.
No. 11 Hardin-Simmons allowed just 300 yards of total offense, but No. 3 Mary Hardin-Baylor was able to make it work as the Crusaders remained unbeaten and handed the Cowboys their first loss, 20-15. On a day in which UMHB retired the number of former D3football.com Defensive Player of the Year and current Chicago Bears linebacker Jerrell Freeman, the defenses held firm as UMHB had scoring drives of 18, 16 and 4 yards in the win. It's HSU's first loss of the season.
Rose-Hulman earned its first win over a nationally ranked team since 1993 and handed No. 14 Franklin its first home conference loss since 2009 in a 23-22 victory. Stanley Hogan III scored on a 1-yard touchdown run with 21 seconds remaining to put the Fightin' Engineers on top. Hogan led the ground attack with 121 yards on 33 carries, including the game-winning touchdown.
Linfield secured its 61st consecutive winning season, as the No. 8 Wildcats rolled out to a big lead and held off Whitworth 45-31. Ian Kolste, who came into the game leading all of NCAA Division III in passing yards and total offense, completed 25 of 48 passes for 293 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. But he was harassed all day by the Linfield defense and ended up getting sacked five times for 45 yards in losses.
St. Lawrence quarterback Sean Richardson threw two interceptions, but his legs provided enough offense to beat Merchant Marine, 8-0. Richardson sprinted for a 78-yard touchdown early in the third quarter, as the Saints defense pitched its fourth shutout of the season. The win places the 7-0 Saints (4-0 LL) one step closer to a potential Liberty League championship showdown against Hobart. Richardson outrushed his counterpart, Merchant Marine triple option quarterback Brice Moore, 91 yards to 76.
Stevenson limited Delaware Valley to 52 yards passing, including Jimmy Lauer returning an interception 38 yards for a touchdown and the No. 15 Mustangs sent a capacity crowd home happy as they blanked the No. 25 Aggies 19-0. Brendan Flaherty had three tackles for loss and forced a fumble which Stevenson converted into a touchdown one play later as Daniel Williams hit Preston Addo for a 14-yard score in the first quarter. It's the first time Delaware Valley has been shut out since 2002.
Mount Union limited Wilmington to three first downs and just 91 yards of total offense and Dom Davis threw for 204 yards and three touchdowns on just 13 attempts as the top-ranked Purple Raiders rolled over Wilmington 71-7. ... Cole Wilber completed just 16 of 35 passes but the Whitewater defense got the job done as the No. 2 Warhawks improved to 7-0 with a 24-2 win vs. UW-Stevens Point. ... No. 4 St. Thomas got the program's 600th all-time victory and coach Glenn Caruso's 100th in a 71-20 win against Hamline. .. Sixth-ranked North Central scored the first 35 points of the game and cruised to win 42-21 at Augustana. ... The Johnnies offense rolled but the defense had the best numbers, allowing just 129 yards in a 56-10 for No. 10 St. John's at Gustavus Adolphus.