Wooster 13, Ohio Wesleyan 9

Oct. 6, 2007

Junior Chris Kras (Aurora) connected on an 18-yard field goal to give the Bishops a 9-6 lead with 5:57 left in regulation time, but Wooster answered with an 80-yard touchdown drive to edge Ohio Wesleyan in North Coast Athletic Conference play on Saturday in Wooster.

With the game tied, 6-6, the Bishops took over at their own 45-yard line. Junior running back Kyle Adams (North Canton/Hoover) broke loose for 12 yards and a first down, freshman quarterback Mike Fisher (Chagrin Falls/Kenston) ran for 3 yards on a third-and-1 call, and junior running back Zack Rojek (Buffalo, N.Y./City Honors School) picked up 14 yards for another Bishop first down. Sophomore running back Steven Brown (Redford Township, Mich./Redford) picked up 7 more yards for an Ohio Wesleyan first down at the Wooster 1-yard line, but the Fighting Scot defense stiffened there, holding the Bishops out of the end zone on 3 straight carries, before Kras came on to give the Bishops the lead.

Kras drilled the ensuing kickoff into the end zone, giving Wooster the ball on its own 20. On first down, quarterback Austin Holter found tight end Ben Schrock for 11 yards, and after running back Dustin Sheppard picked up 5 yards, running back Orlando Jones gained 17 yards for a first down at the Wooster 47. Senior defensive end Patrick Trenor (Urbana) hauled Holter down for a loss of 8 yards on first down, and a Holter incompletion left the Scots facing a third-and-18 from their own 39-yard line. Holter scrambled for a 10-yard gain before connecting with tight end Will Miska for 11 yards and a first down at the Ohio Wesleyan 34-yard line. On the next play, Sheppard broke free for the go-ahead touchdown with 2:58 left in regulation time.

The Bishops got a pair of completions from junior quarterback Andy Boff (Defiance/Tinora) to senior split end Zach Dennis (Jefferson) on their next possession, but the second Boff-to-Dennis connection, which came on fourth-and-4, was spotted just short of the first down and Wooster took over on downs at the Ohio Wesleyan 44 with 2:29 remaining.

Ohio Wesleyan got the ball back once more, but it was inside the Bishop 1-yard line with :11 to play, and while Boff's bomb to freshman split end Greg Orr (San Antonio, Texas/Clark) was complete for 36 yards on the game's final play, it wasn't enough to get the Bishops into the end zone.

Wooster jumped to an early 3-0 lead, taking the opening kickoff and driving to a first down at the Ohio Wesleyan 7. Sheppard took the ball to the 2, but 2 carries by Jones ended up with the ball still at the Bishop 2, and Andy Milligan converted a 19-yard chip shot that gave the Fighting Scots the lead.

Ohio Wesleyan had the ball inside Wooster territory on both of its first-quarter possessions, but the Bishops were not able to turn that field position into points. The Bishops had one lengthy drive in the second quarter, getting a pair of first-down carries from Brown and a 10-yard pass from Boff to Dennis for another first down, but that drive ended at the Wooster 40.

Orr returned the second-half kickoff to the Bishop 47-yard line, and after Fisher ran 14 yards for a first down and found junior tight end Terrance Raeford (Brookline, Mass./Chesire Academy) for 16 yards and a first down at the Wooster 14. Fisher ran for 5 yards and Adams picked up 3 more, but on third-and-2 from the 6, Brown was tripped up for a loss of 2 and Kras came on for a 24-yard field goal that evened the game at 3-3.

The Bishops got the ball back when Trenor recovered a Wooster fumble at the Scot 12-yard line, and after Boff's pass to Dennis on third-and-13 picked up 12 yards, Kras returned to the field and drilled a 20-yard field goal for a 6-3 lead.

Wooster answered late in the third quarter when Holter found Schrock for 55 yards and a first down at the Ohio Wesleyan 15-yard line, and Milligan eventually came on for a 38-yard field goal to tie the game at 6-6.

Boff moved the Bishops downfield early in the fourth quarter, finding Dennis for 10 yards and a first down, then hitting Dennis for 31 yards and a first down at the Wooster 19. Completions to Brown and Raeford set up a fourth-and-8 from the Wooster 17, but Boff's pass intended for Brown fell incomplete.

The Bishop defense then held Wooster to a 3-and-out, setting up Ohio Wesleyan's final scoring drive.

Brown led the Bishops with 74 yards on 19 rushes. Boff completed 13 of 19 passes for 175 yards, with 7 of those completions going to Dennis for 106 yards.

Junior linebacker Tommy Saunders (Gallipolis/Gallia Academy) led the Bishop defense with 11 tackles, including 1 for loss. Senior linebacker Chad Ellis (Dublin/Scioto) had 9 stops, with 2 going for losses, sophomore linebacker George Brown (Columbus/Upper Arlington) had 7 tackles, freshman defensive back Chris Newman (Lorain/Clearview) made 7 stops, including 1 for loss, and sophomore defensive back Rylan Mitter-Burke (Marlborough, Mass./Marlboro) made 6 tackles and broke up 3 passes.

Sheppard led Wooster rushers with 116 yards on 20 carries. Holter completed 14 of 27 passes for 158 yards.

Trey Simmerman and Greg Schermbeck each made 11 tackles for Wooster.

Box Score