Carnegie Mellon 19, Ohio Wesleyan 7

Sept. 5, 2009

Freshman halfback Stephen Haynes (Crestview, Fla./Niceville) connected with freshman halfback Bryan Hoover (Sciotoville/Portsmouth East) on a 31-yard scoring pass to help Ohio Wesleyan take a 7-6 lead, but Carnegie Mellon took the lead early in the fourth quarter and added an insurance score in the final minute for a non-conference win over the Bishops on Saturday in Pittsburgh, Pa.

The Tartans had taken a 6-0 lead midway through the first quarter, taking advantage of a short field after a punt return to the Bishop 38-yard line. On first down, Phil Pantalone hit Nick Segiel for 11 yards, and from there, Carnegie Mellon turned to Chris Garcia and Justin Pratt, who combined to cover the final 27 yards in 7 rushes, with Garcia going over from 7 yards out for the score. Pedro Kroeff misfired on the point-after try, leaving the Tartan lead at 6-0.

Ohio Wesleyan assembled a 76-yard drive late in the first quarter to take the lead. Freshman fullback Woody Earls (New Lebanon/Dixie) and freshman halfback Isaac Morris (Clarksville, Tenn./Northeast) each picked up 5 yards to net one first down, and the Bishops moved the chains again when freshman quarterback Mike Bashioum (Wyano, Pa./Yough) hit junior tight end Danny Flanegan (Mansfield/Ontario) for 14 yards and Rogers picked up 2 yards on second-and-1 from the Ohio Wesleyan 43. Haynes then reeled off a 24-yard run to the Tartan 31, and on third-and-10, lofted a pass to Hoover in the end zone for the tying score. Sophomore Trey Stalnaker (Lithia Springs, Ga./Landmark Christian) converted the extra point to put the Bishops ahead, 7-6, with 13:19 left in the first half.

The Bishops moved into scoring position again later in the second quarter, with Haynes and Bashioum rushing for first downs as Ohio Wesleyan drove to the Tartan 24-yard line, but after Morris's 8-yard run to the 16 on first down, the Bishop offense stalled. Junior Sean Patrick (Delaware/Hayes) came on for a 35-yard field goal try, but Carnegie Mellon's Mike Shedlosky blocked the kick.

Carnegie Mellon put together a drive late in the third quarter, again using the running of Garcia and Pratt to pick up 30 yards. Garcia then caught a pass from Brandon Howe for 12 yards and a first down, and Howe later provided another first down when he caught a Pantalone pass for 8 yards on a fourth-and-3 call from the Ohio Wesleyan 27. From there, it was Garcia and Pratt combining for the next 5 carries, with Garcia scoring on a 2-yard run for a 12-7 Tartan lead with 13:22 left in regulation time. Carnegie Mellon went for 2 points, but Pantalone's pass fell incomplete.

Ohio Wesleyan responded with a lengthy drive of its own, with Haynes catching a pair of passes for 15 yards and a first down before rushing twice for 11 yards and another first down. Earls moved the chains again with a 2-yard pickup on second-and-1 from the CMU 29, but on second down from the 23, sophomore halfback Raymon Beach (Landover, Md./Crossland) fumbled and Carnegie Mellon's Sean Kennedy recovered at the 20-yard line.

The Bishops got a final chance when sophomore cornerback Eli Cowan (Galena/Columbus DeSales) forced a Howe fumble and senior safety Rylan Mitter-Burke (Marlborough, Mass./Marlboro) recovered the ball at the Ohio Wesleyan 20 with 1:23 to play, but on third down, Carnegie Mellon's Devin Murray stripped Bashioum of the ball and returned the fumble 25 yards for a touchdown to seal the outcome.

Haynes led all rushers with 116 yards on 21 carries and led all receivers with 4 catches for 22 yards in addition to his 31-yard TD pass. Bashioum completed 5 of 10 passes for 33 yards and ran 8 times for 39 yards. Sophomore quarterback Keegan Varner (Westerville/Central) completed 5 of 6 passes for 32 yards.

Garcia led the Tartans with 83 yards in 17 rushes, while Pratt finished with 48 yards on 19 carries. Pantalone completed 6 of 8 passes for 33 yards, with 3 going to Garcia and 3 more to Howe.

Senior linebacker Sam Bixler (Denver, Colo./South) led the Bishop defense with 12 tackles, while senior safety Daniel DeLay (Pine, Colo./Conifer) added 11 stops, Mitter-Burke contributed 8 tackles and recovered a fumble, and senior defensive end Mike Browning (East Islip, N.Y.) finished with 7 hits, including 2 sacks.

Stanle Onyimba and Shedlosky had 12 tackles apiece for Carnegie Mellon, while Murray, Bran VanTassel, and Jason Stearns added 11 stops each.

Box Score