Rowan, Westminster pull off upsets

John Mannion breaks a Wesley tackle. (Wesley athletics photo)
John Mannion ran for three touchdowns to lift Rowan past Wesley.
Rowan athletics photo
 

Wesley saw a missed extra point come back to haunt it for the second time in three weeks, and Washington & Jefferson saw its unbeaten run come to an end as the No. 8 and No. 11 teams got knocked off, while No. 10 John Carroll and No. 13 Berry survived challenges in Saturday's Top 25 action.

John Mannion ran for a 77-yard touchdown and a 4-yard touchdown in the second half and Rowan rallied to knock off No. 8 Wesley 28-27. The Wolverines had taken a two-touchdown lead early in the second half, but missed the extra point. Wesley ran just 10 plays in the fourth quarter, and was sacked on two of them. Mannion ran for 158 yards and three touchdowns on just 19 attempts, and the Profs got an additional 91 yards from Messiah Divine in improving to 5-2, 4-2 in the NJAC. Wesley fell to 5-2, 4-2. On the Wolverines' last drive of the contest, defensive linemen Sunny Tapp and David Gajderowicz each sacked Khaaliq Burroughs to ice the game. Burroughs was 18-for-29 passing for 234 yards and two touchdowns.

No. 11 Washington & Jefferson rallied from a 20-7 halftime deficit to tie the game at Westminster (Pa.), but the Titans responded with an 11-play drive, capped by a Keano Grice touchdown run with 10:49 left in the game. Jacob Adams threw one of his two picks on the next drive, and W&J's next drive stalled at its own 25. Adams completed 20 of 33 passes, but they went for only 106 yards, and the Westminster defense bottled up Jacob West as well, limiting him to 57 yards on 16 carries.

Marietta rolled the dice, going for it on fourth-and-1 from its own 34, leading 24-21 with 6:52 remaining in the game. The John Carroll defense stuffed the run in the backfield, and four plays later the Blue Streaks were in the end zone, taking a 27-24 lead. Marietta entered the game at 6-0, matching the best start in school history, but had never beaten John Carroll in 30 previous meetings (one tie). Michael Canganelli ran for 165 yards and two touchdowns for the Blue Streaks, who improved to 6-1, 5-1 in the OAC. Darren Fields was 22-for-33 for Marietta but was sacked five times. John Carroll scored 13 points in the fourth quarter to rally for the victory.

Washington U. quarterback Johnny Davidson had a shot at the end zone on the final play of the game, but overthrew his receiver and No. 17 Illinois Wesleyan held on to defeat the Bears 27-21. Davidson was knocked out of the game on the first series, but returned to complete 28 of 41 passes for 206 yards and a touchdown. For IWU, it was all Brandon Bauer, who completed 26 of 32 passes for 254 yards and a score and ran for three touchdowns as well.

Bryson Lamboy returned a fumble 44 yards for a touchdown and Mason Kinsey hauled in a two-point conversion pass to tie the game 14-14 with 5:12 left, and No. 13 Berry went on to survive and defeat Millsaps 28-21 in two overtimes. The Vikings, who improved to 8-0, had just 260 yards of total offense in regulation. Millsaps (4-3) had extended its lead to 14-6 early in the third quarter when Tyler Muse found the end zone on a 1-yard run, capping a 57-yard drive. The Vikings defense kept Chance Clowers to just 14 completions in 39 attempts, picking him off twice.

Connor Cox hit Malik Morris for a 71-yard touchdown strike with 5:26 left in the game and Jamaal Morant ran for two touchdowns as No. 4 Frostburg State won 24-17 at Montclair State. Wayne Palmer picked off Red Hawks quarterback Ja'Quill Burch near midfield on the next drive and Frostburg pinned Montclair (5-2, 4-2) on the 2-yard line with a punt to seal the game.

UW-Whitewater's shutout streak ended at 193 minutes and 55 seconds, but the Warhawks' win streak continued as they won their 12th consecutive game, defeating UW-River Falls 44-7. Despite the end of the streak, the Warhawks collected three interceptions and held UW-River Falls to 48 first-half yards as they raced out to a 31-0 halftime lead. Cole Wilber was 9-for-15 passing for 137 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another.

Leading just 26-0 going into the fourth quarter, Mount Union scored four times in the fourth, two of them long touchdowns by Justin Hill, to wrap up a 54-0 win vs. Heidelberg. Hill returned a punt 85 yards for a touchdown and caught a 41-yard pass from D'Angelo Fulford in the win for the top-ranked Purple Raiders. Markeith Miller ran for 138 yards and three touchdowns on 18 carries and Jase Hammack and Luke Poorman combined to complete 16 of 21 passes for 150 yards for No. 2 Mary Hardin-Baylor in a 49-0 win at Belhaven. No. 3 Brockport limited Buffalo State to minus-48 yards rushing on the day, and the Golden Eagles converted 13 of 15 third downs in a 65-7 win. Joe Germinerio threw three touchdown passes, including an 83-yarder to Daquan Hubbard

The Johnnies and Tommies had an easy time with their conference foes from Northfield, Minnesota, as No. 5 St. John's rolled over St. Olaf 57-7 and seventh-ranked St. Thomas shut out Carleton 68-0. Josh Parks rushed 13 times for 198 yards and three touchdowns in just two quarters for the Tommies and Jackson Erdmann completed 11 of 12 passes for 178 yards and three touchdowns for the Johnnies. 

Four players reached the end zone and No. 19 RPI built a 24-3 second half lead, then hung on to defeat Hobart 31-24. Three touchdowns were scored in the final 2:51 of the game, but Hobart's onside kick attempt was covered by RPI and the Engineers ran out the clock to remain undefeated. Kyle Radavich completed 19 of 31 passes for 234 yards and two scores and Mitch Gerhartz ran for 111 yards and a touchdown as UW-Oshkosh defeated UW-La Crosse 24-13.

Dashawn Darden threw for three touchdowns and ran for another as Delaware Valley routed Lebanon Valley 52-7. Freshman twins Anthony and Michael Nobile combined for seven stops for loss and four sacks in the win. The Aggies improved to 6-1, 5-0 in the MAC, keeping pace with Misericordia's 6-1, 5-0. The two teams do not meet in this season's unbalanced MAC schedule.

Behind three passing touchdowns from freshman quarterback Drew Saxton, No. 22 Case Western Reserve cruised to its second consecutive win, topping Geneva 27-14. Saxton completed 14 of 28 passes in the game for 232 yards and three touchdowns. The CWRU defense held its opponent to two touchdowns, while limiting the Golden Tornadoes' triple-option offense to 213 rushing yards.