Wooster Takes Control Late in 24-17 Victory

Dustin Sheppard

WOOSTER, Ohio – The College of Wooster scored two touchdowns early in the fourth quarter to take control of its game with visiting Hiram College on Saturday, and the Fighting Scots went on to secure a 24-17 victory, which moved them into the top half of the North Coast Athletic Conference standings.

Hiram (0-6, 0-3 NCAC) actually held a 10-9 lead late in the third quarter. The game started to turn when defensive end Chris Wade (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Penn Hills) intercepted a pass at the line of scrimmage, giving Wooster (2-4, 2-1 NCAC) the ball on the Terriers’ 42-yard line.

On the very next play, Dustin Sheppard (Johnstown, Ohio / Johnstown-Monroe) burst to the right for a 17-yard run. Another first down came when Austin Holter (Johnstown, Ohio / Johnstown-Monroe) found Will Miska (Hillsborough, N.J. / Hillsborough) over the middle for 10 yards on 3rd-and-7. Three plays later, Holter fooled the Terrier defense with a no-look pitch to Sheppard, who got into the end zone untouched. Another Holter-to-Miska connection on the ensuing two-point conversion made it a 17-10 Scot lead.

The Wooster defense held Hiram to a three-and-out on the next drive, allowing the offense to take over on its 37-yard line. The Scots then reeled off four plays of 10 yards or more, including a 13-yard quarterback keeper by Holter and a 23-yard rush by Orlando Jones (Elyria, Ohio / Elyria) on the final     two plays of the possession. It marked Jones’ first touchdown of the season and third of his career, as Wooster went ahead by 14 (24-10).

The Terriers would score their first offensive touchdown of the day late, as Trevor Henderson found tight end Mervyn Jones for a 14-yard score to complete an 8-play, 62-yard drive with :55 remaining.

Luke McCann (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Keystone Oaks) would recover the on-side kick to seal the Scots’ second-straight win.

During the first half, Wooster hurt itself, turning the ball over four times. The Scots outgained Hiram by 78 yards (163-85), however, all they could muster was a 26-yard field goal by Andy Milligan (Orrville, Ohio / Orrville) midway through the first quarter. Following Wooster’s second interception, the Terriers had a short field to work with, but the Scots limited them to a 22-yard Derek Rieg field goal for a 3-3 halftime tie.

Early in the third quarter, Wooster committed its fifth turnover and this time Hiram’s Jeff Papesh returned the pick 55 yards for a touchdown and a 10-3 lead.

The Scots responded well, marching 59 yards over six plays, capped by a 29-yard touchdown reception by McCann from Holter. A bad snap on the point after, though, allowed the Terriers to keep the lead (10-9).

The two teams would then exchange punts before Wade’s interception gave Wooster the momentum.

Statistically for the game, the Scots totaled 333 yards to Hiram’s 197. Sheppard was the workhorse, as he bettered his season-high from last week with 136 yards on 34 carries, while Jones netted 55 yards on seven rushes. Holter completed 11-of-17 passes for 131 yards, with four going to Miska for 61 yards.

Hiram was led by Henderson, who went 18-of-30 through the air for 155 yards, but the rushing game only yielded 42 yards on 26 attempts.

Wooster will look to extend its winning streak to three next Saturday when it travels to Allegheny College (4-2, 2-1 NCAC) for a 1 p.m. kickoff.