A handful of big offensive plays could not upstage a rash of turnovers for the North Central College football team on Saturday, as the Cardinals closed non-conference play with a 34-27 loss to the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point at Community Stadium.
Fifth-ranked North Central (2-1) owned a 394-376 advantage in total offensive yards and held a 24-16 advantage in the second half, but threw four interceptions and surrendered 18 unanswered points late in the game to suffer its first regular-season loss since a 35-21 setback against Wheaton College on Nov. 3, 2012.
The Cardinals looked sharp at the beginning of the contest, getting into the end zone after just three plays as Dylan Warden found a wide-open Peter Sorenson for a 50-yard touchdown pass. Stevens Point (3-0) responded with a 28-yard field goal by Jesse Vervelde, and North Central was in position to counter with a field goal of its own before Dom Zavaglia's 33-yard attempt was blocked. The Pointers drove 52 yards in 11 plays and got another three points from Vervelde, this time from 43 yards away, to narrow the gap to 7-6 with 2:29 on the first-quarter clock.
UWSP's Jake Luedtke intercepted a pass from Warden on the second play of the Cardinals' next drive at the North Central 31-yard line. The Cardinals' defense was able to keep the hosts out of the end zone once again, but the Pointers did take the lead on Vervelde's 26-yard field goal with 14:50 left in the second period.
The teams traded punts, and John Skokna's 30-yard return set North Central up at the Pointers' 48. Just one play later, the Cardinals were back in front, as Ryan Kent took a handoff and bounced to the outside before racing across the goal line for a score and a 14-9 lead with 8:18 left. The Pointers responded with their first touchdown drive of the afternoon, as quarterback Kyle Larson completed a pair of third-down passes to Logan Taylor then covered the final 38 yards on two passes to Matt Sosinsky. The second pass, an 11-yard strike, helped put UWSP back in front, 16-14, with 4:03 to go in the period.
The Pointers' Deion Jones picked off a pass by North Central'sTyler Dicken at the Cardinals' 22-yard line, but a personal foul penalty and quarterback sack by Brian Wilson which resulted in a 12-yard loss knocked the home team out of field-goal position and forced a punt. North Central nudged itself back in front, 17-16, as the half ended, as Warden returned to the field to lead an 11-play, 65-yard series which ended when Zagalia booted a 32-yard field goal as time ran out.
After forcing another Stevens Point punt to open the third period, the Cardinals scored again on a one-play drive, asZack Pattat took a screen pass from Warden and turned it into a 64-yard touchdown reception. With 13:08 to play in the third, North Central owned a 24-16 advantage.
The Pointers tied the score at 24-24 after driving 69 yards in 12 plays and scoring both a touchdown and two-point conversion on passes from Larson to Taylor. Jones' second interception of the day ended North Central's next drive and left the hosts just 19 yards from the goal line. Four plays later, UWSP went back in front on a five-yard scoring run by Jake Menzel. With 3:01 to go in the third, the Pointers owned a 31-24 edge.
Stevens Point followed by attempting an onside kick, but the attempt did not travel the requisite 10 yards and the Cardinals took possession at the Pointers' 44-yard line. The visitors were unable to take advantage of the advanced field position, as a fourth-down conversion attempt was off the mark. Larson zipped a 27-yard pass to Taylor and an 18-yarder to Sosinsky before Vervelde came on to kick his fourth field goal of the day, a 33-yarder which extended the lead to 34-24 with 13:08 on the clock.
UWSP's Zach Vallafskey came up with the Pointers' fourth interception of the day on the next play from scrimmage. The home team was in position to score once again before a fumble in the end zone. The Cardinals' Trey Hartema scooped up the ball and returned it to the North Central 43,. WIth Dicken back in the game at quarterback, North Central turned the miscue into points six plays later as Zavaglia's 29-yard field goal closed the deficit to 34-27 with 8:16 left. The Cardinals had two opportunities to tie the score in the final minutes, but turned the ball over on downs on both possessions.
Kent ran for 107 yards on just 12 carries for the Cardinals, while Sorenson gained 114 yards on four receptions. Warden was 6 of 16 passes for 175 yards, while Dicken completed 3 of 10 passes for 56 yards. Richard Zirngibl was North Central's leading tackler with 10 stops, while Peter Mann added nine and Michael Monterrubio finished with eight.
Larson completed 25 of 38 passes for 302 yards, finding Taylor 10 times for 108 yards and Sosinsky nine times for 145. Vallafskey paced the Pointers' defense with nine tackles.
North Central opens pursuit of its ninth straight College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) championship on Saturday, hosting Millikin University in the CCIW opener for both teams. Kickoff at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium is set for 6:00 p.m.