Wheaton, Ill. – The Wheaton football team earned a 31-14 victory at home against Augustana on Saturday afternoon in front of a near capacity Homecoming crowd at McCully Stadium. Wheaton, ranked seventh in this week's D3football.com poll, is now 5-0 on the year and 2-0 in CCIW play. Today's win is the 17th consecutive regular season win for the Thunder, dating back to the 2013 season.
The Thunder offense racked up 391 yards on the day as Wheaton passed for 121 yards in the game and ran for 270. The offense ran 61 plays on the day, averaging 6.4 yards per play.
Sophomore running back Sola Olateju carried the ball 15 times for 95 yards, with one touchdown run on Saturday. Sophomore Jordan Shive scored a pair of touchdowns on his four carries for the day. Shive ran for 39 yards, averaging 9.8 yards per carry.
Junior quarterback Johnny Peltz completed six of his 12 passing attempts for 55 yards. Andrew Bowers completed three of his nine passing attempts for 66 yards with one touchdown toss. Bowers also ran for 25 yards. Luke Thorson caught four passes for 46 yards.
Senior linebacker Mikey Swider made nine total tackles, with three solo tackles, including 1-1/2 tackles for lost yardage (-6 yards). Fellow linebacker Caleb Ashby tallied eight tackles, including six solos. He recorded two tackles for lost yards (-6 yards), with an interception. Defensive back Marcus Smith had eight total tackles, with three passes broken-up. Cornerback Alex Mendez registered six tackles with an interception and three pass break-ups. Tyler Sigler recorded an interception for the Thunder with five tackles.
Marcus Smith returned the opening kickoff of the game 45 yards to have the Thunder offense start the gae in Augustana territory. Wheaton methodically used its field position to move the ball. Olateju reached the end zone on a six-yard touchdown run that gave the Thunder a 7-0 lead with 10:32 left in the first quarter. Olateju's touchdown capped an eight-play drive of 45 yards. The Vikings pushed the ball to the Wheaton six-yard line on the guests' opening drive, but Augustana missed a 33-yard field goal attempt. A Wheaton interception on the ensuing drive allowed the Vikings to regain possession, but the Thunder defense quickly stalled the guests.
Wheaton capitalized on its next drive that culminated with an 11-yard touchdown run by Shive. The eight-play drive of 92 yards extended the hosts' lead to 14-0 with 14:55 left in the second quarter. The Thunder defense again forced the Vikings to punt on the drive that followed. The Wheaton offense took advantage of its starting position on the Thunder 40-yard line. A 14-yard run by Olateju pushed the Thunder charge to the Vikings' nine-yard line and helped setup a 32-yard field goal for Thunder kicker Stefan Knoerr. Knoerr's field goal increased the Wheaton lead to 17-0 with 7:43 left in the first half. Ashby intercepted an Augustana pass at the Wheaton 13-yard line on the next drive to stop the Vikings' drive. The hosts led 17-0 at halftime.
The Vikings opened the second half with the ball and on Augustana's third play of the drive Sigler recorded an interception and returned it to the Augie 26-yard line. Bowers threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Andrew Lindquist of the first play of the ensuing drive to increase Wheaton's lead to 24-0. The Thunder defense forced a three-and-out on the Vikings' next drive, but a Wheaton turnover gave the Vikings the ball on the Wheaton 38-yard line. Augustana's Brandon Leggett reached the end zone on a 14-yard touchdown that trimmed Wheaton's lead to 24-7 with 9:09 remaining in the third quarter. A Wheaton turnover allowed the Vikings to start a drive on the Thunder 33-yard line. The guests to advantage seven plays later with a five-yard touchdown pass from Frasco to Danny Lattner that cut the Wheaton advantage to 24-14 with 55-seconds left in the third quarter.
The Vikings' defense forced a Wheaton punt on the drive that followed. Frasco eluded the Wheaton defense on the opening play of the guests' next drive with a 58-yard run that put Augie on the Wheaton 16-yard line. The Vikings got the ball to the Thunder one-yard line first third and goal. Adam Dansdill and Chase Greenlee stopped Fasco's running attempt on third down to force the crucial fourth and goal. Dansdill pressured Frasco on the passing attempt and the incomplete pass gave Wheaton the ball on its own one-yard line. Wheaton methodically moved the ball down the field on a 12-play drive in the possession that followed. A key play on the drive was a 34-yard pass from Bowers to Lindquist that put the Thunder at the Augie 18-yard line. Two plays later Shive scampered into the end zone on an 18-yard touchdown run that proved critical in extending Wheaton's lead to 31-14. Wheaton's defense forced the Vikings to punt on the next drive and Wheaton possessed the ball for the final 4:18 of the game to earn the 31-14 win.
Wheaton remains at home next Saturday when the Thunder will host Millikin for a 6:00 p.m. kickoff at McCully Stadium