Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Turnovers
Time of Poss.
Precipitation came in two forms on Saturday at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium, as the rain that fell throughout the afternoon was accompanied by a first-half storm surge from the North Central College football team. The Cardinals overwhelmed the Carthage College, 49-6, to post their third straight win.
North Central (6-1, 5-1 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin) scored all 49 of its points and rolled up 515 yards of total offense before halftime, cruising to a 15th consecutive win over the Red Men.
Saturday's game also saw another program career record set by Cardinal receiver Andrew Kamienski, whose 61 receiving yards pushed his career total to 2,634, surpassing the previous record of 2,574 set by Steve Hlavac '11.
The Cardinals established a lead they would not relinquish after just six plays, as Ethan Greenfield shook off a would-be tackler in the backfield and scampered 18 yards for the day's first touchdown. North Central's lead doubled to 14-0 with 4:05 left in the first period, as Broc Rutter connected with Alex Rose for a 17-yard touchdown pass.
North Central's final score of the opening quarter came with 57 seconds on the clock, as Kamienski made a leaping grab to complete a 12-yard toss by Rutter for his 12th scoring reception of the season. Greenfield burst through the middle of the line for a 15-yard TD run early in the second period, then collected a screen pass from Rutter and followed a cadre of blockers for a 42-yard touchdown reception with 5:49 to play in the first half.
Rutter delivered his fourth touchdown pass of the day 25 yards over the middle to Blake Williams, then closed the half with a 27-yard TD completion to DeAngelo Hardy with 40 seconds on the clock. As the rainfall intensified in the second half, it put the brakes on both offenses. Carthage (3-4, 3-3 CCIW) turned in its lone score on a 45-yard fumble return by Jake Tomczak with 9:24 to play.
The Cardinals finished with 614 yards of total offense, hitting the 600-yard mark for the fourth time in six CCIW games, while allowing Carthage to gain only 172. Rutter completed 18 of 22 passes for 308 yards and tied a career high with five touchdown passes, while Greenfield gained 208 rushing yards on just 13 carries. Greenfield's 250 all-purpose yards matches the sixth-highest single-game total in North Central history. Williams was North Central's leading receiver with seven catches for 129 yards.
Ben Wong returned from a two-game absence to lead North Central's defense with nine tackles, while Bryan Beauchamp, Cameron Martin and Dan Gilroy each totaled six. Martin recorded three tackles for loss, while Gilroy collected two quarterback sacks. Jake Beesley broke up three passes and Julian Bell made his first collegiate interception in the third period.
The Cardinals travel to face Elmhurst College (1-6, 1-5) next Saturday. Kickoff at Langhorst Field is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.