Securing sole possession of first place in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) standings, the North Central College football team put its stamp on Saturday's game against Carthage College early and put the brakes on the Firebirds, 64-13, at Art Keller Field.
The No. 1-ranked Cardinals (5-0, 4-0 CCIW) scored the first 33 points of the contest and reached the end zone on seven of eight first-half possessions, recording the 10th-highest yardage total (639) in the program's history. North Central's highest yardage output against Carthage is 645, set in a 45-35 victory on Nov. 13, 1993. The Cardinals have now won 16 straight games as well as 16 consecutive meetings with Carthage dating back to 2005.
After forcing a punt on the game's first drive, North Central got to work quickly establishing a lead that would never be threatened. Facing third down-and-three at the Firebird 39-yard line, quarterback Luke Lehnen connected with Andrew Kamienski on a slant route which the senior turned upfield and took to the end zone. The touchdown was Kamienski's 50th receiving TD as a Cardinal, making him the 15th player in NCAA Division III history to reach the milestone.
Carthage (3-2, 3-1), which was coming off a 63-point outburst in its previous game against Millikin University, came out firing in an attempt to level the score, but a leaping, spinning interception by Nic Rummell ended the drive near midfield. Seven plays later, a one-yard touchdown plunge by Ethan Greenfield extended the visitors' lead to 13-0.
Kamienski hauled in a 44-yard pass on the first play of North Central's next possession and made a 19-yard grab two plays later. Lehnen dropped back to pass on first-and-goal from the two-yard line, eluding the Firebird pass rush and scrambling across the goal line. After another Carthage punt, Lehnen threw over the hosts' defense to DeAngelo Hardy for a 73-yard scoring pass and a 26-0 first-quarter lead. The Cardinals gained 292 yards in the first period while allowing only 22.
Lehnen ran for a one-yard score early in the fourth period before the Firebirds' offense found some rhythm and scored on Noel Wright's 23-yard touchdown run. North Central responded with a seven-play, 75-yard possession which consumed more than five minutes and ended with Lehnen's three-yard TD pass to Kamienski. Carthage recovered a fumble on the Cardinal 15-yard line and scored on Bryce Lowe's pass to Sam Limbaugh on the next play.
Terrence Hill got the ball five times in six plays on North Central's final first-half drive, scoring on a two-yard run and sending the visitors into halftime ahead, 47-13. The Cardinals gained 467 yards on 44 plays in the first two quarters.
Hill played a lead role in North Central's first second-half score, running for another two-yard touchdown with 6:48 on the third-quarter clock. The Cardinals tacked on a two-yard TD run by Justin Lynch and a 26-yard field goal by Tanner Rains in the fourth period.
North Central gained a season-high 353 passing yards while running for 286 and owning a nearly 15-minute advantage in time of possession. Lehnen completed 18 of 25 passes while also running for 30 yards on eight carries. Greenfield ran for 89 yards on 12 attempts and Hill gained 70 yards on 11 rushes.
Kamienski caught nine passes for 140 yards, establishing a new CCIW record for career receptions in conference play (205), while Hardy caught three passes for 107 yards. Sam Taviani and Storm Simmons shared the team lead in tackles (5) while Jake Beesley ended a Carthage drive with an interception in the end zone. The Firebirds were able to gain just 56 yards in the second half.
Lowe completed 11 of 26 passes for 130 yards, finding Sylvere Campbell three times for 67 yards. Wright ran 17 times for 88 yards and Garrett Warner finished with a game-high 12 tackles.
The Cardinals host Elmhurst University (1-4, 1-3) Saturday at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6:00 p.m. Click HERE for live coverage options.