#13-Wheaton football earns a 28-3 victory versus Elmhurst

Wheaton, Ill.- The Wheaton football team ran off 21 unanswered points in the second half to defeat the Elmhurst Bluejays (1-5, 0-3) on a breezy afternoon at McCully Stadium. Wheaton, ranked 13th in this week's D3football.com poll, improves to 6-0 overall and 3-0 in CCIW play with the victory. The Thunder will travel to Illinois Wesleyan University (6-0/3-0) next Saturday to take on the Titans at 1 PM in a matchup of unbeatens.

Wheaton rolled up 413 yards of total offense in the victory, passing for 263 yards and running for 150 yards. Elmhurst also ran for 150 yards and passed for 99 yards to total 249 yards of total offense. Wheaton held the Bluejays to just 98 total yards in the second half while compiling 264 total yards.

After a three-and-out to start the game, Wheaton took its second possession of the game 68 yards on six plays and capped the drive with a four-yard touchdown run by Jordan Roberts to take a 7-0 lead with 7:46 remaining in the first quarter. Stephen Seitz (PICTURED RIGHT) had a big 37-yard reception on the drive to move the ball down to the Elmhurst 17-yard line.

Elmhurst threatened twice inside the Wheaton 30-yard line in the second quarter, only to have drives stall and end on unsuccessful fourth down conversions.

Wheaton's kickoff to start the second half was stood up by the stiff wind and dropped in the middle of the field to be recovered by the Thunder on Elmhurst's 33-yard line. Four plays later, the Thunder converted on fourth down inside the Elmhurst red zone only to have the ball stripped out and recovered by the Bluejays.

Following an exchange of three-and-outs, the Bluejays used a 41-yard pass completion by Joe Camiliere to Garrett Claxon to set up an eventual 39-yard field by David Tomis to cut the lead to 7-3.

Wheaton's offense responsed with a seven-play, 70-yard drive that started with a 22-yard run by Jesse Geary and ended with a five-yard touchdown run by Geary to give the Thunder a 14-3 lead with 2:09 left in the third quarter. Geary finished with 45 yards rushing on 12 attempts. Keegan Kemp (PICTURED LEFT) converted a big third down on the drive with a 32-yard catch and run down to the Elmhurst 13-yard line.

The Thunder defense responded with a quick stop to give Wheaton the ball just before the end of the third quarter. Wheaton's offense continued its momentum by covering 73 yards on nine plays and capped the drive on a one-yard plunge by Roberts to make the score 21-3 in favor of the Thunder. David Washko's 34-yard catch would set-up Roberts' touchdown run.

Taking advantage of a short field after a wind-altered punt, the Thunder offense put the finishing touches on its performance with a three-play, 48-yard drive that ended with a 35-yard touchdown scamper by Roberts. Sam Cote's fourth extra point accounted for the final margin of 28-3 with 8:41 remaining in the game. Cote (PICTURED RIGHT) also had a strong day punting, averaging 42.2 yards on five punts including a booming 56-yard punt that pinned Elmhurst inside its own two-yard line late in the first half. Four of Cote's five punts ended inside the Bluejays' 20-yard line.

Roberts finished the game as Wheaton's leading rusher with 62 yards on 11 carries and three touchdowns. He was also 21-for-29 through the air for 263 passing yards. Seitz, Kemp, Washko and Matt Mitchell each finished the game with more than 40 receiving yards.

Adam Dansdill and Brett Anderson both had nine tackles to lead the Thunder defense. Jordan Higgins recorded seven hits and 1.5 tackles for loss and David Suominen and Brandon Dykstra each had five tackles.Print Friendly Version

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