Ohio Wesleyan 31, Hiram 7

Nov. 1, 2008

Freshman quarterback Keegan Varner (Westerville/Central) fired a pair of touchdown passes to sophomore tight end Danny Flanegan (Mansfield/Ontario) as Ohio Wesleyan took a 17-7 halftime lead, and the Bishops pulled away in the second half for a North Coast Athletic Conference win over Hiram on Saturday at Selby Field.

Ohio Wesleyan took the opening kickoff and wasted no time in marching down the field, moving the chains on runs by junior running back Steven Brown (Redford Township, Mich./Redford) and Varner. Facing a third-and-4 situation from the Hiram 38-yard line, Varner found Flanegan open down the middle of the field and the Bishop tight end made the catch for the touchdown and a 7-0 lead just under 3 minutes into the action.

The Terriers answered with a long drive, with quarterback Trevor Henderson making throws to Preston Buice and Steve Hammond for first downs before Matt Wilson caught a pass for another first down, then ran on 4 straight plays to set up a third-and-3 at the Bishop 6-yard line. Henderson's third-down pass into the end zone was incomplete, and on fourth down, Henderson connected with Robert Jenkins but the Terrier receiver was stopped short of the first down by senior cornerback Preston Osborn (Edgerton).

Taking over at their own 4-yard line, the Bishops chewed up the rest of the first quarter in driving deep into Terrier territory. Brown ran for 2 first downs, and senior running back Kyle Adams (North Canton/Hoover) and sophomore running back Mickey Gies (West Palm Beach, Fla./Seminole Ridge) each picked up another first down before Varner's scramble for 7 yards gave the Bishops a first down at the Hiram 30-yard line. Adams followed with an 11-yard gain for another first down, but the Bishop drive stalled there, and senior Chris Kras (Aurora) came on for a 36-yard field goal attempt on the first play of the second quarter.

Hiram's Jeff Papesh broke through and blocked the kick, however, and Stefhen Offutt recovered the ball and took off down the left sideline, scoring on a 71-yard return to tie the game at 7-7.

Ohio Wesleyan took the lead for good later in the second quarter. Adams reeled off an 11-yard gain to start the drive, and Varner's connection with senior split end Nathan Osborn (Edgerton) for 10 yards moved the sticks again. Gies picked up 5 yards on third-and-3 from the Hiram 35, and on the next play, Varner connected with Flanegan down the middle for a 30-yard TD strike and a 14-7 Bishop lead with 1:10 left in the first half.

On the ensuing kickoff, sophomore linebacker Eric Miller (Plymouth) stripped the ball from Hiram's Hammond and recovered it on the Terrier 21-yard line. Varner missed connections with sophomore split end Seth Phillips (London/Madison Plains) and with Flanegan on what would have been their third touchdown connection of the half, and the Bishops settled for Kras's 28-yard field goal for a 17-7 lead with :34 left in the quarter.

Midway through the third quarter, Ohio Wesleyan took over on the Hiram 38-yard line after a short punt, and after Varner found Flanegan for 12 yards and a first down, Adams broke through the middle for 20 yards and a touchdown that extended the Bishop lead to 24-7.

On the last play of the third period, sophomore linebacker Brian Janiak (Hilton Head Island, S.C.) picked off a Henderson pass and returned it 13 yards to the Hiram 46-yard line, and a Hiram personal foul penalty on the play gave the Bishops the ball at the Terrier 31-yard line. Varner hit Flanegan for 11 yards and a first down at the 15, and after carries by Adams and Brown moved the ball to the 4-yard line, Brown covered the final 4 yards to account for the 31-7 final margin.

Adams led the Bishops with 122 yards on 21 carries and a touchdown. Varner completed 7 of 14 passes for 108 yards and 2 scores. Flanegan caught 4 passes for 91 yards and the 2 touchdowns.

Defensive standouts for the Bishops included senior linebacker Matt Nasif (Brookline, Mass.), who had a team-high 8 tackles; senior linebacker Tommy Saunders (Gallipolis/Gallia Academy), who had 7 stops; Preston Osborn, who finished with 6 tackles; junior safety Rylan Mitter-Burke (Marlborough, Mass./Marlboro), who had 4 tackles, including 1 for loss, and picked off a Terrier pass; and Miller, who made 3 stops, intercepted a pass and forced and recovered a fumble.

For Hiram, Henderson completed 22 of 34 passes for 143 yards, with 9 of those completions going to Jenkins for 57 yards. Wilson led the Hiram ground game with 35 yards on 11 carries.

Destin Betsill led the Hiram defense with 10 tackles, while Offutt finished with 8 stops, a fumble recovery and a pass breakup.

Box Score