/notables/2021/03/week7-wrapup-saturday

Saturday was a big day for blue

Wesley and Montclair State met earlier in March in a scrimmage. Saturday's game was the real thing.
Montclair athletics file photo
 

On Saturday, Wesley got its kicker back and got into the win column, while Mount St. Joseph and Hanover rolled up huge rushing numbers en route to wins and Millikin sprinted out to a huge lead and held on against Illinois Wesleyan. Plus, Hardin-Simmons and Mary Hardin-Baylor each won big to set up a showdown on March 27 for the ASC championship.

Josh Taylor ran for 225 yards and five touchdowns for Mount St. Joseph while Shawn Coane and Walt Ballinger combined for 34 carries, 370 yards and five scores for Hanover.

Mike Brewer returned an interception 24 yards for a touchdown and it didn't hurt having kicker Joe Delgado back either as Wesley defeated Montclair State 20-13 on Saturday, giving the Wolverines their first win of what will be their final season in college athletics. Latrell McCants ran for two big gainers on Wesley's first touchdown drive and quarterback Brady Walters ran for a touchdown in the third quarter to give the Wolverines a 20-6 lead. Ja'Quill Burch used his feet to finish a nine-play drive with a touchdown to cut that lead to seven on the first drive of the fourth quarter, but the Red Hawks missed a 48-yard field goal attempt and turned the ball over twice on downs the rest of the way as Wesley held on for the victory. McCants finished with 79 yards on 16 carries.

Mary Hardin-Baylor scored in every phase of the game and saw the offense find life in the second half as the Cru posted a 65-20 win against Louisiana College. The win also clinches the outright ASC East Division title for the Cru and sends UMHB to next weekend's ASC Championship Game at West Division champ Hardin-Simmons. Jacob Mueller had an 8-yard pick-six for the Cru, giving UMHB the lead for good, while K.J. Miller returned a punt 52 yards for a score as well in the first half. UMHB (4-0) rolled up 324 of its 539 yards of total offense after halftime. The Cru will travel to Hardin-Simmons, the West Division champ, which won in similarly dominating fashion with a 58-6 victory at Sul Ross State. The Cowboys ran for 291 yards and five touchdowns, while holding the Lobos to 110 yards on the afternoon.

Hanover managed to hold Montez Archer Jr. without an interception as the Panthers racked up 392 rushing yards in defeating Bluffton 51-44. Coane ran for 208 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries and Ballinger added 11 carries, 162 yards and three scores, but it was quarterback Matthew Weimer with the game-winner, on a sneak with 15 seconds left. The Panthers took a two touchdown lead late in the fourth quarter but Bluffton managed to tie it up at 44-44 with 4:44 left as Zachary Nobis ended a 44-yard drive with a 29-yard touchdown run. But the Panthers, starting at their own 9, marched 91 yards in 12 plays for the game-winner in improving to 2-0.

Archer had intercepted six passes in the first two games of the spring. When he did get his hands on the ball, Archer returned a kickoff 78 yards to set up Bluffton's first touchdown of the game.

Millikin rolled out to a 32-0 lead on Illinois Wesleyan and closed the game out in the fourth quarter as the Big Blue defeated the Titans 38-28. Illinois Wesleyan hadn't lost to Millikin since Oct. 10, 2009 but managed just 39 total yards on its first six possessions as Millikin dominated. IWU did pull back into the game and was within 10 points with 8:00 left to play, but the Big Blue put the ball in the hands of their running backs and never had to give it up, as they took 13 plays and melted away the final eight minutes of the clock to salt away the win.

Maryville played in a defensive battle for the second week in a row, but came out on the other end this time as Huntingdon defeated the Scots 16-13 in overtime. Connor Rutledge converted for Maryville (1-1) on its overtime possession by booting through a 39-yard field goal, but it was all Kahari McReynolds in the Hawks half, as he ran four times for 22 yards before Landon Cotney finished the drive off with a 3-yard touchdown up the middle to touch off the celebration in Montgomery, Alabama.

Gavin Zimbelman made his return to the field a memorable one in Aurora's 42-7 win against Eureka. He threw five touchdown passes on 17-for-30 passing for 290 yards. The Spartans' defense racked up eight tackles for loss, two and a half of them from linebacker Marcel Romious, as they held the Red Devils to 130 yards of total offense on the afternoon. Franklin and its fab freshmen came in riding high at 2-0 to start the season, but the Lions of Mount St. Joseph made the Grizzlies live up to their age as they cruised to a 56-19 victory. Taylor not only ran for 225 yards and five touchdowns, he threw for 167 yards and two more on a dominating day in which he only played three drives after halftime. The Lions also broke up eight passes and sacked Franklin quarterbacks five times. Belhaven also won its second game in a row to improve to 2-2, tying for the most wins the program has had since leaving the NAIA for Division III in 2015. 

Dec. 15: All times Eastern
Final
Cortland 38, at North Central (Ill.) 37
@ Salem, Virginia
Video Box Score Recap Photos
Dec. 9: All times Eastern
Final
North Central (Ill.) 34, at Wartburg 27
Box Score Recap
Final
Cortland 49, at Randolph-Macon 14
Box Score Recap Recap Recap Photos
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