The Lions' defense put forth a great all-around effort today and the Mount offense got contributions from many players as the Lions knocked off host Illinois Wesleyan University, 25-15. The Mount goes to 3-0 with the win while IWU falls to 1-2. The Lions are off next weekend and return to action on Sept. 29 with an HCAC game at Anderson University. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m.
The Lions offense took a while to get going today but thanks to an opportunistic defense, the Mount fell behind by only an 8-0 score in the early going. Alex Harbin (Cincinnati, OH/Elder) recovered a fumble at the Titans' 48-yard line on IWU's first possession. After the Lions went three-and-out in their first possession, Ricky Stautberg (Cincinnati, OH/Elder) grabbed his fifth interception of the season in the end zone to thwart the ISU drive. Harbin recovered his second fumble of the game on the Titans' next possession â€" at the Mount 39-yard line â€" but the Lions fumbled the ball away on their ensuing possession.
IWU would record the first score of the game with 3:00 to go in the first quarter when Marcus Dunlop plunged in from a yard out. The Titans converted the two-point PAT when the kicker tossed the conversion pass to the team's holder. Mount quarterback Vince Palmer (Cincinnati, OH/Anderson) and wideout Mike Jones (Columbus, OH/Walnut Ridge), along with tailback Jake Davis (Cincinnati, OH/Anderson) helped the Lions' offense march down the field with Davis' racing 40yards into the end zone with 1:48 remaining in the first quarter. Kevin Koch (Cincinnati, OH/Roger Bacon) added the PAT kick to cut the deficit to 8-7. The Titans, however, connected on a 34-yard TD pass play with 10:17 showing on the clock and went ahead, 15-7, after the PAT kick.
From there, it was all Lions' on the scoreboard. Koch booted a 32-yard field goal with 6:47 remaining in the first half to cut the deficit to 15-10. The Lions finally grabbed the lead with 12:36 on the third quarter clock when Mike Lovell (West Chester, OH/Lakota West) bolted in from seven yards out, giving his team a 16-15 lead. The Mount would add a fourth quarter safety and a Palmer to tight end Marcus Pryor II (Wyoming, OH/Wyoming) seven-yard TD strike with 5:17, and Koch's PAT kick, ended the scoring.
The Mount's defense forced five fumbles and recovered four, had one sack and an interception while holding IWU to 90 yards rushing in 37 carries and four-of-14 third-down conversions. Erik Prosser (Cincinnati, OH/Oak Hills) led the Mount with 10 tackles while three other Lions' defenders had seven tackles each. Lovell led the Mount with 86 yards rushing while Palmer was 14-of-30 for 143 yards, one TD and no interceptions. Jones and Pryor each had four receptions.
