By Greg Chandler
D3sports.com

The Purple Raiders of Mount Union keep right on rolling, right back to the top spot in the AFCA Division III poll.

With No. 1-ranked Pacific Lutheran falling to Linfield last Saturday, No. 2 Mount Union moved into the top spot with its 58th consecutive regular season victory, a 48-24 whipping of Ohio Athletic Conference rival Ohio Northern.

Playing in front of a crowd of 4,611, Mount Union took control of the game early, building up a 28-0 lead in the third quarter before the 16th-ranked Polar Bears could get on the scoreboard.

The Purple Raiders piled up 564 yards in total offense, led by tailback Chuck Moore's four touchdowns -- three on the ground and a fourth through the air.

Moore had 140 yards on the ground, while teammate Dan Pugh added 129 more, and Mount Union quarterback Gary Smeck completed 20 of 31 through the air for 289 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Wideout Adam Marino caught 12 of Smeck's passes for 177 yards and a touchdown.

Mount Union (3-0 OAC, 4-0 overall) has now won 52 in a row against OAC opponents, dating back to 1994.

Ohio Northern (1-1, 2-2) got 125 yards rushing from Jamal Robertson and 247 yards passing from Shane Franzer in a losing cause. Franzer threw for two touchdowns and ran for a third.

While Mount Union continues to add to its amazing run, Grove City's R.J. Bowers put his name in the Division III record book on Saturday. Bowers became the leading rusher in D-III history by rushing for 301 yards on 40 carries, scoring three touchdowns in the Wolverines' 27-7 victory over archrival Thiel.

Bowers broke the career rushing record previously held by Coe's Carey Bender on the game's fourth offensive play, scooping up an errant pitch from Grove City quarterback Steve Lacinski and turned the play into an 11-yard gain.

Bowers didn't stop once he surpassed Bender. By the end of the day, he had moved past Heisman Trophy winners Ron Dayne and Ricky Williams on the all-time NCAA all-divisions career rushing list. With 6,411 career yards, he still needs more than 500 yards to surpass Emporia State's Brian Shay as the most prolific rusher in NCAA history.

No. 7 Wittenberg continued to roll with a 35-21 win over Allegheny in a battle of traditional North Coast Athletic Conference powers. The Tigers scored twice in the first six minutes of the fourth quarter to ice their 26th straight regular season win and 17th straight NCAC win overall.

Witt's Casey Donaldson rushed for 132 of his 158 yards in the second half to surpass Denison's Chris Spriggs (1989-92) as the most prolific rusher in NCAC history for a career. He also scored his NCAC record 56th career touchdown.

Meanwhile, the Tigers' defense put the clamps of Allegheny's stud runner, Shane Ream, limiting him to 88 yards on 25 carries, only the second time in the last 10 games he's been held under 100 yards rushing.

Wittenberg (2-0 NCAC, 5-0 overall) has now beaten Allegheny four straight times, the first team to do that since Carnegie Mellon accomplished the feat from 1980-83. Allegheny (1-1, 2-3) has now lost all three of its games to teams ranked in the top 10 in the AFCA Division III poll -- Washington and Jefferson, Mount Union and Wittenberg.

Wooster (2-0, 4-0) kept pace in the NCAC with a 21-14 win over Ohio Wesleyan. Linebacker Seth Duerr was again the story for the Fighting Scots' defense, recording 16 tackles and forcing a fumble on a critical fourth-and-one from inside the Wooster 20 in the final minute to preserve the win.

Wooster first-year coach Mike Schmitz is the first coach to in school history to win his first four games since 1926. This week, the Fighting Scots take on Wabash, which recorded its first NCAC win on Saturday with a 34-0 thumping of Oberlin.

Remember the Titans
We don't know if the Westminster (Pa.) team has watched the new Denzel Washington movie, but these Titans played a game to remember Saturday in their Presidents Athletic Conference debut on the road against defending champ Washington and Jefferson.

Westminster recorded a school-record 10 quarterback sacks, including one by Charles Szabo in the end zone for a safety with less than four minutes to play, as the Titans shocked No. 11 W&J 19-17. Szabo had four of the sacks against Presidents' quarterback Brian Dawson, who had thrown 15 touchdown passes in his first three games this season.

Washington and Jefferson, which had gone over 50 points in each of its three games, was held to minus-4 yards rushing and 206 yards total offense.

Washington and Jefferson's stunning loss wasn't the only PAC upset on Saturday. Waynesburg shut down Bethany's running game in handing the 22nd-ranked Bison their first loss of the season (in their first test of the season), 13-3. The Yellow Jacket defense set up two field goals with fumble recoveries in Bethany territory, and Paul Burgh's 37-yard interception return for a touchdown iced the win for Waynesburg (4-1).

Who needs ball control?
Heidelberg held the ball for 41 minutes Saturday against John Carroll, but it was the Blue Streaks that made the most of their time of possession. JCU (3-1) had six scoring drives, none longer than three minutes, in its 39-11 win over the 'Berg. Tom Arth threw for 292 yards and three touchdowns and ran for a fourth for John Carroll.

Special players on special teams
Albion's Keith Debbaudt set a school record last year with 11 field goals. That mark is already in jeopardy this season, as the senior has booted eight field goals in nine attempts, three of 40 yards or more.

Muskingum kicker Kevin Smith kicked a 23-yard field goal with nine seconds left, giving the Fighting Muskies a 31-29 win against Marietta. Wittenberg's Jason Jackson tied a school record with a 94-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the Tigers' win against Allegheny.

Wooster's Seth Mastrine became the Fighting Scots' all-time leader in punt return yardage with 796 yards, breaking a 20-year-old record previously held by Tim Jackson.

Other headliners
Marietta's Kenneth Sasu rumbled for 254 yards and a pair of scores in the Pioneers' heartbreaking loss to Muskingum. Hope's Adam Magers rushed for a career-high 164 yards and two touchdowns as the Flying Dutchmen (3-1) crushed Wisconsin Lutheran, 54-14. Magers' teammate, Brian Adloff, caught five more passes to give him 112 for his career, setting a school record for receptions in a career.

After tough losses to Wilmington and Ohio Northern to open OAC play, Baldwin-Wallace took out its frustration on Capital. The Yellow Jackets caused eight turnovers and turned them into 28 points in dismantling the Crusaders, 53-11. It was Capital's first loss after a season-opening three-game winning streak, the school's best start since 1977.

Earlham is off to its first 2-0 start in the NCAC since joining the league in 1989. The Quakers downed Hiram 29-14 to improve to 4-1, their best overall start since 1992. Earlham linebacker Robert Gunn made 21 tackles, including 14 solos, to lead the defense. Hiram linebacker Jeremiah Cleveland had 15 stops to lead the Terriers' defense.

Another defensive standout in a losing effort was Adrian's Winston McGee, who had four quarterback sacks against Thomas More.

John Carroll wide receivers Larry Holmes and Jeff Lerner have each gone over the 1,000-yard mark in career receiving yardage. Holmes went over the 1,000-yard milestone against Mount Union, while Lerner joined Holmes in the Heidelberg game with a 51-yard reception.

Olivet freshman quarterback Jason VanLuven completed 16 of 27 for 283 yards and three touchdowns as the Comets won their second straight, 48-3, over Rockford. Olivet had lost 15 straight before posting its back-to-back wins. Denison sophomore Greg Neuendorf completed 29 of 47 passes for 306 yards and two scores, leading the Big Red to a 17-14 win against Kenyon.