Wooster 20, Ohio Wesleyan 2

Sept. 20, 2008

Senior cornerback Preston Osborn (Edgerton) and junior safety Rylan Mitter-Burke (Marlborough, Mass./Marlboro) turned in outstanding defensive efforts for Ohio Wesleyan, but Wooster defeated the Bishops in the North Coast Athletic Conference opener for both teams on Saturday in Wooster.

Wooster drove to a first down at the Bishop 15-yard line on its first possession of the game, but senior cornerback Preston Osborn (Edgerton) and junior safety Daniel DeLay (Pine, Colo./Conifer) dumped Wooster receiver Will Hansen for a 5-yard loss on first down and the Scot drive ended there. Dan Grangaard came on for a 37-yard field goal attempt, but his kick went wide right.

On their next possession, though, the Scots found paydirt. Austin Holter found Jordan Ferns for 17 yards and a first down, then Holter hit Mike Redick on an 18-yard scoring play that capped a 49-yard, 5-play drive.

After the Wooster score, the Bishop offense started making some noise, answering with a drive that stalled at the Fighting Scot 40, then seeing another possession end at the Wooster 2 when Bryan Albani intercepted a pass from sophomore quarterback Mike Fisher (Chagrin Falls/Kenston).

Osborn kept the game close by picking off a Holter pass in the Ohio Wesleyan end zone, ending a 92-yard drive by the Fighting Scots.

Ohio Wesleyan marched downfield toward the tying score, moving into Wooster territory on a 30-yard strike from Fisher to junior tight end Ryan Prince (Cleveland/Marshall). Fisher picked up another first down with a 6-yard run, then found sophomore tight end Danny Flanegan (Mansfield/Ontario) for 18 yards and another first down. A Wooster penalty gave the Bishops a first down at the 7-yard line, but on first down, sophomore running back Mickey Gies (West Palm Beach, Fla./Seminole Ridge) fumbled at the goal line and Wooster recovered to end the threat.

The Bishops had one more shot in Wooster territory late in the first half, but Fisher's fourth-and-1 pass from the Fighting Scot 37 was incomplete.

In the second half, Mitter-Burke kept the game close by picking off a Holter pass at the Ohio Wesleyan 5-yard line early in the third quarter, then intercepting another Holter pass at the Bishop 17-yard line early in the fourth quarter.

Wooster got excellent field position when Fisher was sacked and fumbled at the Bishop 19, and Brian Swan fell on the ball on the Ohio Wesleyan 22-yard line at the midway point of the fourth quarter. The Scots took advantage of the opportunity, with Dustin Sheppard covering the 22 yards in 2 plays to increase the Wooster lead to 13-0.

On the ensuing point after kick, Mitter-Burke surged through the Wooster line to block the kick, had the ball bounce back to him, and set sail for the Wooster goal line. The defensive extra point, the first in Ohio Wesleyan history, made the score 13-2 with 6:55 left in regulation time.

The Bishops moved the ball out to their own 40-yard line, but after a short completion from freshman quarterback Keegan Varner (Westerville/Central) to sophomore split end Seth Phillips (London/Madison Plains), Phillips fumbled and Wooster recovered at the Bishop 43, setting up an insurance score for the Fighting Scots.

Gies led the Bishops with 32 yards on 8 rushes. Fisher completed 11 of 19 passes for 116 yards, while Varner completed 3 of 6 passes for 3 yards. Senior running back Kyle Adams (North Canton/Hoover) led the Bishops with 4 catches for 20 yards.

Defensive standouts for Ohio Wesleyan included Mitter-Burke, who made 8 stops, intercepted 2 passes and blocked a Wooster kick; senior linebacker Matt Nasif (Brookline, Mass.), who collected a team-high 9 stops; DeLay, who had 8 tackles, recovered a fumble and assisted on a tackle for loss; senior linebacker Matt Weisman (Solon/Gilmour Academy), who made 8 stops; and senior tackle Julian Strother (Warren/Kennedy), whose 7 tackles included a sack and 2 1/2 for loss.

For Wooster, Sheppard led the way with 85 yards on 18 carries. Holter completed 21 of 32 passes for 172 yards,with 7 of those passes caught by Redick for 73 yards.

Matt DeGrand led the Wooster defense with 13 tackles, including 2 sacks, and forced and recovered a fumble.

Box Score