Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Turnovers
Time of Poss.
The No. 1 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater football team put forth a dominant effort in all three phases of the game Saturday, downing Finlandia (Mich.) University 66-3 in a non-conference contest at Perkins Stadium.
The Warhawks (2-0 overall) totaled 555 yards, including 392 on the ground, and allowed the Lions (0-3) just 89 yards. The team's rushing output is the most since 2010, when it ran for 463 yards on Sept. 11 against Dakota State.
UW-Whitewater also recorded eight rushing touchdowns, breaking the previous school record of seven, which was tied last week at Belhaven (Miss.).
With the win, the Warhawks extended their college football leading win streak to 34 games.
Freshmen Jarrod Ware and Tyler Glass led UW-Whitewater's balanced rushing attack. Ware finished with 86 yards and a touchdown on just seven carries, while Glass tallied seven rushes for 61 yards and a score. Senior running back Nick Patterson registered two touchdowns.
Junior quarterback Chris Nelson passed for 63 yards and a touchdown, while senior wide receiver Joe Worth finished with two receptions for 53 yards and a score.
Freshman linebacker Bryce Leszczynski paced the defense with 10 tackles, including a pair of sacks. Senior defensive back Shawn Shillcox and junior linebacker Paul Foster each had an interception, helping the Warhawks force three turnovers.
UW-Whitewater rolled up 236 yards and 28 points in the first quarter. Senior running back Jordan Ratliffe set the tone on the opening drive, rishing five consecutive times for 58 yards, including a three-yard scoring plunge to give the team a 7-0 lead with 12:51 left in the period.
Patterson scored from five yards out on the next drive to double the Warhawks' advantage. After Foster's interception on the second play of the ensuing Finlandia drive, UW-Whitewater turned around and made it 21-0 at the 5:41 mark when Nelson found Worth, who dove inside the pile-on for a 22-yard score.
Shillcox picked off Lions quarterback Ronald Brown on the first play after the kickoff, and Patterson scored on the third play of the resulting drive to make it 28-0 with 4:46 on the clock.
Ware and junior quarterback Zack Gehant each rushed for touchdowns in the second quarter, and Finlandia knocked in a field goal in the waning moments of the half to make it 42-3.
In the third quarter, Glass ran in from 21 yards to make it 49-3 with 9:50 left, and freshman kicker Ben Franzen hit a 23-yard field goal to increase the advantage to 52-3 at the 5:39 mark.
Leszczynski sacked Brown on the next drive, forcing a fumble that was recovered by senior linebacker Matthew Hoppe at the Lions' 34-yard line. The turnover set up a 1-yard touchdown run by junior running back LaCurt Evans to make it 59-3 with 2:28 on the clock.
Freshman running back Martice Jackson accounted for UW-Whitewater's lone score in the fourth quarter, compiling a four-yard run with 11:44 to play to account for the final margin.
The Warhawks visit Morningside College, the No. 2 ranked NAIA team in the nation, Thursday for a 6 p.m. kickoff in Sioux City, Iowa.