Game Book | 6-Game Season Stats
TIFFIN, Ohio—Sophomore linebacker Dawson Gore (Bellevue) made a career-high 15 tackles, including two for loss, but the Heidelberg University football team lost to No. 2 University of Mount Union today, 56-7, in an Ohio Athletic Conference game in front of 1,849 fans at Mayer Field in Tiffin, Ohio. Winds blowing at 25 miles per hour made playing conditions difficult on both sides of the ball.
The loss drops the Berg to 4-2 overall and 3-2 in the OAC and snaps its three-game winning streak. The Purple Raiders improve to 6-0 overall and 5-0 in the OAC and maintain sole possession of first place atop the league standings.
Both teams battled to a 0-0 deadlock after the first quarter, combining for just 70 yards of total offense.
Mount Union opened a 28-0 lead by the end of the second quarter, including touchdown receptions of 24 and 15 yards by Jasper Collins, and a 12-yard run by OAC leading rusher Jeremy Murray.
Collins caught two more TD passes in the third quarter and finished the day with game-highs of eight catches, 159 yards and four TDs.
Freshman quarterback Michael Mees (North Ridgeville) cut the Purple Raider lead to 42-7 with just two seconds to play in the third quarter.
On fourth down and needing five yards for a first down, Mees dropped back to pass, but decided to tuck the ball, scampering for 19 yards to the end zone, capping a nine-play, 64-yard drive. The TD run was the first of Mees’ career. Junior kicker and reigning OAC special teams player of the week Dan Kilger’s (Novi, Mich./Novi) extra point was good.
Mees finished the day six-of-22 passing for 66 yards and three interceptions. Through the first six games of his collegiate career, Mees is 80-of-163 passing for 1,154 yards and 12 TDs against only six INTs.
Mount Union added two more TD drives in the fourth quarter.
Fifth-year head coach Mike Hallett’s offense totaled 195 yards of offense and 129 rushing yards against a defense that entered the game leading the nation in allowing only 170.6 total yards per game and ranked seventh nationally in rushing defense, giving up just 57.8 yards per game on the ground. The Student Prince rushing attack was led by sophomore second-team All-OAC running back Germany Woods (Cleveland/Lakewood St. Edward) with 63 yards on 24 carries. Woods also caught a team-high three passes for 17 yards. Woods now has 687 yards rushing on 137 carries this season for a 5.0 yards per rush average.
Junior wide receiver Mario Escalante (Highland Heights, Ky./Newport Central Catholic) caught two passes for a team-high 27 yards.
Murray led the Purple Raiders with a game-high 139 rushing yards on 26 carries. Neal Seaman and Matt Piloto, sharing time at quarterback, combined to go 14-of-24 passing for 245 yards and five TD passes.
In addition to Gore on defense, junior linebacker Craig Sykes (Centerburg) tallied eight tackles, including one for loss, and sophomore defensive back Chase Bauer (Amelia/McNicholas) led the secondary with seven stops and two pass break-ups.
Jorge Carbonell led Mount Union with eight tackles.
Heidelberg returns to the gridiron Saturday, Oct. 22 when it faces Marietta College in an OAC match-up in Marietta at 1:30 p.m. The Pioneers defeated Wilmington College, 31-6, earlier today.