Box Score
Ohio Wesleyan 28, DePauw 13
Sophomore quarterback Zane Ries (Barberton) tossed a pair of touchdown passes and senior wide receiver Justin Lowry (Litchfield/Buckeye) caught a pair of 20-yard touchdown passes to help Ohio Wesleyan build a 28-0 lead, and the Bishops withstood a second-half DePauw comeback for a North Coast Athletic Conference win on Saturday at Selby Stadium.
The Ohio Wesleyan win, combined with Wabash's 31-13 win over Wittenberg and Denison's 38-21 win over Wooster, resulted in a 4-way tie for first place in the NCAC standings between Ohio Wesleyan, Wabash, Wittenberg, and Denison at 4-1 in conference play.
After forcing a 3-and-out on the opening possession of the game, Ohio Wesleyan marched to the end zone in just over 90 seconds. The Bishops took over on the DePauw 48 after a 10-yard punt return by senior wide receiver Gabriel Miller (Delaware/Buckeye Valley), and after a pass interference penalty on the Tigers, Ries connected with senior wide receiver Sasoun Tcholakian (Farmington Hills, Mich./North Farmington) for 11 yards and a first down. Two plays later, Ries found senior wide receiver Mher Tcholakian (Farmington Hills, Mich./North Farmington) for a 22-yard scoring play.
The Tigers answered with a lengthy drive, converting a pair of third-and-2 situations along the way, but on fourth-and-4 from the OWU 20, Jack Drake came on for a 37-yard field goal attempt. Senior defensive end Kyle Hogan (Centerburg) blocked the kick to preserve the shutout.
Ries found senior tight end Cody Brown (Lebanon) for 15 yards and a first down, and on the next play, junior running back Trey Dixon (Atlanta, Ga./Westlake) broke loose on a 55-yard scoring run, and senior kicker Anthony Sanfillipo (Delaware/Hayes) split the uprights on the conversion for a 14-0 Ohio Wesleyan lead.
After another DePauw punt, the Bishops took over on their own 12-yard line, but senior running back Curtis Duren (Oviedo, Fla./Hagerty) provided better field position with a 28-yard run on the first play of the drive. Ries moved the chains with completions of 8 yards to Sasoun Tcholakian and 14 yards to Mher Tcholakian, and on third-and-3 from the Tiger 20, Ries hit Lowry on a 20-yard pass for the score that made it 21-0.
On the Bishops' next possession, Ries found Lowry for 35 yards to get out of a first-and-20 situation on the Ohio Wesleyan 22, and sophomore running back Marty Sesma (San Diego, Calif./Sweetwater) picked up 6 yards on third-and-3 to keep the chains moving before picking up another first down with an 8-yard reception on third-and-6 from the DePauw 28. On second down from the 20, Ries sent the ball backward to Duren, who came up throwing and found an open Lowry in the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown pass and a 28-0 lead.
With time running out in the first half, the Bishops appeared to be on the move again, with Ries finding Sesma for 14 yards and a first down, but on third-and-4 from the Bishop 49-yard line, DePauw's Joe Zanca sacked Ries and forced a fumble that the Tigers recovered on the Bishop 44.
DePauw's Collin Knecht moved the Tigers with completions of 12 yards to James Deaton and 20 yards to Ethan Hudson, the latter giving the visitors a first-and-goal from the 7 with :18 to play. Junior linebacker Shane Quin (Chardon) dropped Ethan Hudson for a loss of one on first down, and a dropped pass led to a third-and-goal from the 8-yard line. Knecht found Deaton coming out of the backfield, and the Tiger running back reached over the goal line to put the visitors on the scoreboard on the final play of the half. Hogan blocked Drake's extra point try and the half ended with the Bishops up, 28-6.
Dylan Hyatt intercepted a Ries pass on the opening series of the second half to give the Tigers the ball on the OWU 40, and DePauw converted a pair of fourth-down situations, with Jarrod Stiver running for 7 yards on fourth-and-6 from the OWU 25, then hauling in a 7-yard completion from Knecht on fourth-and-6 from the OWU 10. On second-and-goal, Knecht found Deaton for a touchdown and Drake's conversion brought DePauw within 28-13 with 8:11 left in the third quarter.
DePauw moved into Ohio Wesleyan territory on its next drive as well, with Knecht hitting Gavin Ritter for 11 yards for a first down at the Bishop 37, but senior safety Ryan Rubel (Toledo/St. John's) forced a Stiver fumble at the OWU 29, with Quin falling on the ball to end the Tiger threat. Knecht broke free on a 35-yard run on the Tigers' following possession, but the drive stalled at the OWU 10-yard line and Drake sliced a 27-yard field goal attempt wide right in the opening minute of the fourth quarter.
Later in the period, the Bishops ended a DePauw drive at the OWU 8-yard line by forcing 4 straight incompletions, and the Tigers' last chance ended at the OWU 36, when Knecht's toss to Ethan Hudson picked up 9 yards on fourth-and-10.
Ries completed 17 of 23 passes for 216 yards and 2 touchdowns. Mher Tcholakian caught 5 passes for 74 yards and a score, and Lowry finished with 4 catches for 76 yards and 2 touchdowns. Dixon led the Bishops with 90 yards on 15 carries.
Quin led the Bishops with 13 tackles, including 2 for loss, and recovered a fumble. Senior safety Nick Heidel (Cincinnati/Indian Hill) and junior linebacker Cody Streit (Griffin, Ga.) each made 10 stops, and junior linebacker Lucas Cooper (Hurricane, W.Va.) contributed 9 tackles.
Knecht completed 30 of 56 passes for 218 yards and 2 scores, and led Tiger rushers with 44 yards on 7 carries. Jackson Hamersly made 8 catches for 52 yards. Josh Coons led the Tigers with 10 tackles.
Box Score
