Bethany 34, Ohio Wesleyan 28

Sept. 16, 2006

Brent Owens and Matt Cruse hooked up on a 9-yard scoring play with :01 to play to lift Bethany over Ohio Wesleyan in non-conference action on Saturday at Selby Field.

Bethany scored twice in the final minute of regulation time to escape with the win.

Ohio Wesleyan had taken a 28-20 lead with 5:20 left in regulation time. After taking over on the Bethany 37-yard line, senior halfback Nick Rice (Dublin/Scioto) picked up 6 yards. On the next play, Rice took the handoff, broke left, eluded a pair of Bison defenders near the sideline and galloped the remaining 31 yards for the touchdown. The conversion by sophomore kicker Chris Kras (Aurora) gave the Bishops a 28-20 lead.

Bethany's Taylor McNeil returned the ensuing kickoff to the Bison 32, and Owens then connected with T.J. Parker for gains of 1 and 16 yards. A sack by junior end Alex Branstool (Utica) and a Bethany holding penalty resulted in a third-and-12 situation from the Bethany 47, but Owens found Parker again for 17 yards and a first down, then handed off to Brett Clough for 21 yards and a first down at the Ohio Wesleyan 15. Owens and Cruse connected again for 9 yards and Clough took care of matters from there, gaining 4 yards on third-and-1 before scoring on first-and-goal from the 2-yard line.

Trailing, 28-26, with :46 left in regulation time, the Bison went for a game-tying 2-point conversion, but Owens' pass for Cruse at the back of the end zone was high, preserving the Ohio Wesleyan lead.

Bethany got another chance when the Bison recovered an onside kick at the Bethany 46-yard line with :41 left in regulation time.

On first down, Owens scrambled out of the pocket and out of bounds for a gain of 5, and an Ohio Wesleyan personal foul on the play moved the ball to the Bishop 34-yard line. Owens then threw consecutive passes to Mike Elias in the left flat, with Elias getting out of bounds after gains of 8 and 5 yards, the latter giving the Bison a first down at the Bishop 21 with :23 remaining. Owens then hit Milton Joyner for 13 yards and a first-and-goal at the Ohio Wesleyan 8, with the Bison calling time out with :16 to play. An incomplete pass and a sack by senior end Owen Case (Marion/River Valley) left Bethany with a third-and-goal from the 9 with :06 to play, and after a timeout, the Bethany offense stayed on the field and Owens found Cruse in the back right corner of the end zone for the game-winning score with :01 to play. Owens then connected with Joyner for a 2-point conversion to increase the Bison lead to 34-28.

The Bishop defense struck first in the game. On the game's opening possession, sophomore defensive tackle Julian Strother (Warren/Kennedy) sacked Owens for a loss of 14 yards, forcing a fumble. Case picked up the loose ball and scored on a 29-yard return, giving Ohio Wesleyan a 7-0 lead just over 2 minutes into the game.

Special teams helped Ohio Wesleyan increase its lead. Late in the first quarter, the Bishops punted the ball away and Bethany's Matthew Dahle fielded the punt at the Bison 41. Case came in and knocked the ball loose and fell on it, giving the Bishops the ball back at the Bethany 38-yard line.

Rice picked up a first down with runs of 8 and 6 yards, then took a pass from junior quarterback Steve Hymes (Barberton/Massillon Washington) for 9 yards and a first down at the Bethany 12-yard line. Rice scored on the next play, giving the Bishops a 14-0 lead.

Ohio Wesleyan increased its lead to 21-0 with the help of a 4-play, 80-yard drive. Taking over at their own 20 after a Bethany punt, the Bishops got a 16-yard run by Hymes, a 23-yard run by Rice, a 37-yard connection from Hymes to junior split end Zach Dennis (Jefferson) and finally, a 4-yard burst for a touchdown by sophomore fullback Kyle Adams (North Canton/Hoover).

Both kickers missed field goal tries later in the quarter, with Bethany's Rob Miele hitting the right upright from 35 yards and missing wide right from 38 yards, and Kras missing wide left from 36 yards.

Bethany got on the scoreboard midway through the third quarter, assembling a 71-yard, 7-play drive. Key plays included a 12-yard run by Clough, a 48-yard pass from Matt Blumer to Cruse and a pass interference penalty on Ohio Wesleyan that turned an incompletion on third-and-8 from the Bishop 13 into a first-and-goal from the Ohio Wesleyan 2. After an illegal procedure penalty on the Bison, Blumer hit Parker on a fade pattern for a 7-yard scoring play.

Blumer sparked another scoring drive on Bethany's next possession, finding Parker for 27 yards on a third-and-5 call from the Bison 48, then hitting Parker again for 17 yards on second-and-18 from the Bishop 33, with a 5-yard face mask penalty on the play giving Bethany a first down. Owens came back in and found Joyner on an inside route for a 4-yard touchdown pass, and Miele's conversion brought the Bison within 21-14 with 2:24 left in the third quarter.

On its next possession, Bethany took over on the Bishop 34-yard line after an incomplete pass on a fake punt. The Bison picked up a first down at the 23 but then faced a fourth-and-8 situation from the 21. Owens then connected with Parker for 20 yards and a first down. Bethany then brought in 6-7, 350-pound defensive lineman Quinn Taylor as a running back, and the move worked as Taylor scored on the next play, bringing the Bison within 21-20. Miele's point after try was wide, preserving the Ohio Wesleyan lead and setting up the final minutes of regulation time.

Rice led the Bishops with 120 yards and 2 touchdowns on 15 carries, while Adams finished with 33 yards and 1 TD on 9 carries. Hymes completed 8 of 16 passes for 138 yards, with Rice making 5 catches for 44 yards.

Clough led Bethany with 85 yards on 15 carries. Owens completed 18 of 27 passes for 168 yards and 2 touchdowns, while Blumer was 4 of 7 for 99 yards and 1 touchdown. Parker caught 12 passes for 156 yards and a score, and Elias had 4 catches for 66 yards.

Case shared the Bishop lead with 11 tackles, including 3 1/2 for loss and 3 sacks, forced a fumble and had 2 fumble recoveries. Sophomore cornerback Ryan Ellis (Columbus/Dublin Scioto) made 11 stops, including 1/2 for loss, and broke up a pass, while senior safety Kyle Sherman (Plain City/Dublin Scioto) had 11 tackles and recovered a fumble. Senior tackle Dominic Schwed (Aurora) contributed 9 tackles, including 3 1/2 for loss, and junior safety Mike Schleiden (Canton/Massillon Perry) also had 9 stops, including 1/2 for loss.

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