Sophomore kicker Anthony Sanfillipo connected on a 20-yard field goal to give Ohio Wesleyan the lead with 3:46 left in regulation time, and sophomore defensive end Kyle Hogan blocked a potential game-tying field goal attempt on the final play -- his second blocked field goal attempt of the game -- as the Battling Bishops defeated 20th-ranked Wabash on Saturday in Crawfordsville, Ind.
The win was Ohio Wesleyan's first over Wabash since 1989, breaking a 13-game losing streak to the Little Giants.
The game was tied at 13 early in the fourth quarter, but with Wabash threatening, freshman cornerback Nick Sala intercepted a Weston Murphy pass at the Ohio Wesleyan 21-yard line.
On third-and-10 from the 21, senior quarterback Brian Berry connected with senior wide receiver Hunter Baker on a 43-yard play to move the ball to the Wabash 36-yard line. Sophomore running back Curtis Duren picked up one first down with a 5-yard burst, and Berry moved the chains again with a 14-yard pass to junior wide receiver Deji Adebiyi for a first-and-goal at the Wabash 6. After carries by Duren and sophomore running back Alex Barrett moved the ball to the 3-yard line and an incomplete pass on third down, Sanfillipo came on and converted a 20-yard field goal try for a 16-13 Bishop lead with 3:46 left in regulation time.
The Little Giants rallied with a completion from Murphy to Ra'shawn Jones for 21 yards and a first down at the Wabash 46, then back-to-back 7-yard gains by Ike James picked up a first down at the Bishop 40. After moving the chains with an 8-yard completion from Murphy to Dylan Buresh on fourth-and-7, the Little Giants were whistled for offensive pass interference. Austin Nightingale broke loose for a 19-yard gain, but senior free safety Brad Brodek and freshman linebacker Cody Streit combined to sack Nightingale for a 5-yard loss. With the Little Giants out of time outs, they spiked the ball on third down to set up a 47-yard field goal try. Schuyler Nehrig's kick was wide left, but Wabash received new life when junior cornerback Natrone Barnes was flagged for roughing Nehring. Murphy found Buresh for a 10-yard gain to the Ohio Wesleyan 5, but after a time out, the Bishops got the yards back when senior defensive end Anthony Chambers sacked Murphy. After spiking the ball to stop the clock, the Little Giants lined up for a 32-yard field goal attempt to force overtime, but Nehrig's kick was blocked by Hogan, with sophomore linebacker Michael Smosny covering the ball to end the game.
Wabash had taken a 3-0 lead on Nehrig's 43-yard field goal late in the first quarter.
Ohio Wesleyan answered with an 11-play, 73-yard march that saw Berry pick up first downs with completions to Baker and Duren before Barrett picked up 2 yards on a fourth-and-1 carry from the Wabash 39. Berry then found Duren for 16 yards and Baker for 21 yards to put the Bishops into the end zone, and Sanfillipo's point-after gave Ohio Wesleyan a 7-3 lead.
Berry drove the Bishops late in the half, finding sophomore wide receiver Mher Tcholokian for a 5-yard gain before a pair of throws to sophomore wide receiver Sasoun Tcholokian picked up 18 yards and a toss to Baker gained 6 more. Sanfillipo came on and booted a 30-yard field goal to up the Bishop lead to 10-3 with 1:15 left in the half.
The Bishops nearly struck again in the final seconds of the half. After forcing a quick punt, Ohio Wesleyan took over at midfield with :12 left in the half, and a 20-yard strike from Baker to Adebiyi put Ohio Wesleyan in field goal range. Sanfillipo's 47-yard field goal attempt was short, but Wabash was flagged for running into the kicker, and Sanfillipo tried again from 42 yards out, but his kick hit the right upright to end the half.
Wabash narrowed the deficit to 10-6 after opening the second half with an 8-play, 62-yard drive that led to a 26-yard Nehrig field goal. The kick was set up by a 42-yard completion from Murphy to Jones that gave the hosts a first down at the OWU 15.
Ohio Wesleyan countered with a drive of its own, with Berry finding Adebiyi 3 times for 37 yards before an 18-yard gallop by Duren set up a 29-yard Sanfillipo field goal that made it 13-6.
Another Wabash field goal attempt led to the game-tying touchdown. On the Little Giants' ensuing possession, Nehrig came on for a 41-yard field goal attempt. Hogan made the block, but Nehrig recovered the ball and scooted upfield to the end zone for a 24-yard touchdown run, then kicked the point-after to knot the game at 13 with 5:16 left in the quarter.
Berry completed 23 of 51 passes for 284 yards and a touchdown. Adebiyi had 8 catches for 98 yards. Duren led Bishop rushers with 53 yards on 8 carries.
Brodek had a team-high 13 tackles, including half a sack and 1 for loss, and junior linebacker Cameron Smith added 11 tackles, including 2 for loss.
Murphy completed 13 of 32 throws for 166 yards. Jones made 4 catches for 85 yards and Buresh had 4 receptions for 23 yards. James led all rushers with 87 yards on 24 carries. Evan Hansen had 14 tackles for the Little Giants.