/notables/2021/04/week9-wrapup

Friday: Etta hangs, but Mount hangs on

Jaden Manley got Mount Union's first touchdown. The Purple Raiders' second touchdown came nearly two quarters later.
Photo for Mount Union athletics by Ed Hall Jr.
 

It was 8-3 at the half, 14-3 after three, but Marietta couldn't put any offense together and Mount Union went on to win 20-3. Meanwhile, Wesley won its final road game ever, and Adrian rallied from 18 down to beat Olivet as part of Division III football action on Friday, April 2.

Marietta picked up 48 yards and a field goal on its first drive of the game, but the Pioneers got just 68 more yards and no more points the rest of the night as Mount Union edged away to a 20-3 win. Mount Union came back to score a touchdown on its next drive, as Braxton Plunk hit Jaden Manley for a 16-yard score with 23 seconds left in the first quarter, but the Purple Raiders would not get into the end zone until nearly 29 minutes of game time later, as it remained a one-possession game for some time. Drake Neuberger, a D3football.com Team of the Week honoree two weeks ago, came up with two sacks on Plunk, but it was the Purple Raiders defense that shone, racking up 10 tackles for loss. Two and a half came from Eli Beers. Plunk finished 27-for-47 passing for 327 yards and three touchdowns.

Jack Wurzer scored the game-winning touchdown with 3 minutes, 2 seconds left, and the Adrian defense withstood a missed extra point 62 seconds later, as the Bulldogs rallied from 18 points down to clip visiting Olivet, 28-27. Adrian had broken a 21-21 tie after Olivet turned the ball over on downs at the AC 44, further aided by a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on the Comets coach. Wurzer and company marched down the field to the 1-yard line where Wurzer plunged into the end zone to put the Bulldogs up 28-21.

The Comets, however, responded with a TD of their own as Jarrett threw a 10-yard TD pass to Ta'Mar Heart-Wilkins to complete a three-play, 63-yard drive in just 1:02. But the potential game-tying PAT was wide left after Olivet was whistled for a 5-yard false start penalty. Olivet had led 21-3.

Wesley defeated Christopher Newport 23-7, in CNU's final game of the spring and the final NJAC game for the Wolverines. Wesley athletics will cease to exist after the spring semester after the school was bought out by neigboring Delaware State University. Latrell McCants scored his second TD of the evening in the third quarter on a 10-yard scamper, and Deandre Davis later connected on a 36-yard field goal. Brady Walters threw a 15-yard scoring strike to Devin Curry in the fourth quarter to push the lead to 23-0. The Captains averted a shutout thanks to a defensive score. Freshman Shawn Hamilton recovered a Wesley fumble and returned the ball 26 yards for a score with 5:23 to play in the fourth quarter to conclude the scoring. McCants led the Wolverines with 91 rushing yards on 16 carries with two scores. Wesley quarterback Brady Walters completed 15 of 28 passes for 129 yards and a score.

Maryville went up by 17 points early in the fourth quarter and it turned out the Scots would need that three-score advantage as Averett threatened in the closing minutes before falling 27-24. Averett (1-3) pulled within a field goal late as sophomore quarterback Bryce Jackson found junior receiver Jarrod Mosby for a 15-yard touchdown with 1:56 remaining. The Cougars' defense responded by forcing Maryville (2-2) to go three-and-out on its ensuing possession while also preserving time on the clock by using its three timeouts. Averett got the ball back with 1:28 to play. The Cougars' offense worked the ball downfield, crossing midfield. Facing fourth-and-2, Averett's pass was deflected and intercepted by the Scots, sealing their victory. The Cougars outgained Maryville in yardage 411-377, but threw a pair of interceptions and lost two fumbles. Trevor Thomas threw three touchdown passes for the Scots (2-2). 

Abellany Mendez rushed for 111 yards and two scores and also hauled in a touchdown catch as Montclair State captured the NJAC North Division title with a 28-0 victory over William Paterson. Wide receiver Brian Kowalczyk also added a touchdown as the Red Hawks finished their abbreviated spring season at 2-1.

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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