Box Score
The College of Mount St. Joseph recorded 318 yards rushing, and scored four rushing touchdowns as they recorded a season-opening 26-16 win at Wilmington College. The Mount, 1-0 on the season, has a bye this week and will be back in action on Sept. 17 when they at Anderson University in their HCAC season opener.
Wilmington jumped out to leads of 7-0 and 14-0 in the first quarter, scoring one touchdown each on the ground and through the air. The Lions got on the scoreboard early in the second quarter when James Clay (Louisville, Ky/Manual Dupont) broke off a 34-yard TD run and Daniel Dripps (Wapakoneta, OH/Wapakoneta) added the PAT kick. The Mount tied the game later in the quarter when quarterback Brian Pitzer (South Salem, OH/McClain) rushed in from a yard out â€" and after Dripps’ kick â€" saw the score at 14-all.
After a fumble recovery by the Mount’s Konnor Blevins (Cincinnati, OH/Lakota West) in Wilmington territory, the Lions’ Pitzer put his team ahead on a five-yard TD run, 20-14. The Quakers sacked Pitzer in the end zone with 10:04 on the fourth quarter clock, but would get no closer, making the score 20-16. Sean Keller (Maineville, OH/Kings) scored on a nine-yard run for the Mount with three minutes left in the game to seal the victory for the Lions, their ninth straight win over Wilmington in the all-time series.
Pitzer completed only two of seven passes, for 17 yards but gained 92 yards on the ground. Clay added 141 yards rushing on 18 carries as the Mount averaged 5.9 yards per carry during the game. The Lions held a 17-10 edge in first downs and a 335-219 advantage in total offense. Wilmington gained 121 yards rushing and 98 yards passing. The two teams combined for 17 penalties in the game, with the Lions racking up eight penalties. The Lions were four-of-12 on third down compared to Wilmington’s four-of-16 conversions on third down.
Tyler Hopperton (Walton, KY/Simon Kenton) led the Lions’ defense with nine tackles while Tyler Elrod (Harrison, OH/Harrison) had eight tackles and an interception. Sean Brooks (Englewood, OH/Northmont) added three tackles for loss yards, including a sack. Brett Hambrick (Cincinnati, OH/Elder) chipped in a sack while teammate Ralphael Allen (Trotwood, OH/Trotwood-Madison) added an interception.
