BOURBONNAIS, ILL. – Indiana Wesleyan lost a 44-20 decision in the season opener at Olivet Nazarene Saturday afternoon. The Wildcats are now 0-1 on the season while the Tigers stand at 2-0.


IWU STANDOUTS

• Brayden Smith led the team with six receptions and 84 yards receiving. Tommy Fossett's 36-yard reception was the longest one of the day for the Wildcats.
• Freshman Payton Shoemaker rushed for a team-high 91 yards on 21 carries, averaging 4.3 yards a rush. 
• Xander Stokes completed 18 passes for 187 yards and a touchdown. 
• Ben VonGunten booted through two field goal attempts and two extra points. 
• Josh Davidson's 12 total tackles and eight solo stops topped the defensive effort.

WHERE THEY STAND

• Brayden Smith now has 1,640 receiving yards, topping the charts. He scored his 20^th receiving touchdown of his career in the game. 
• Ben VonGunten now has 151 career points while Brayden Smith has 126 points on 20 receiving touchdowns and one rushing touchdown.

GETTING THEIR HANDS ON THE BALL

• IWU recorded four pass breakups on the day, including two by Neil Campbell. Isaac Abeo and Kevon Gregory each added one.
• The Wildcats forced a pair of fumbles, including one by Jamis Carson. 

LOSING GROUND

• IWU had three tackles for loss, with two coming from Ismael Avila. He now has 18 tackles for loss in his career, topping all Wildcats in the category. Last season, Avila had 8.5 tackles for loss. 

FIRST QUARTER

• Trailing 7-0 in the first quarter, all-time leading scorer Ben VonGunten booted a 32-yard field goal, putting the Wildcats on the board with 2:20 remaining.

SECOND QUARTER

• IWU fell behind 10-3, but Ben VonGunten blasted a 35-yard field goal at the 9:27 mark to cut the deficit to 10-6.
• A Xander Stokes four-yard run and a Ben VonGunten extra point gave IWU gave the visitors a 13-10 edge at the 6:53 mark.
• Olivet Nazarene scored a pair of late touchdowns for a 24-13 lead at the break.

THIRD QUARTER

• After the home team kicked a field goal with 4:46 to play in the third stanza, Brayden Smith hauled in a 32-yard pass from Xander Stoked, making it 30-20. 

FOURTH QUARTER

• IWU drove to the 20 yard line at the start of the fourth quarter, but a fourth-down attempt was denied, giving the ball back on downs. 
• The Tigers posted back-to-back touchdowns, sealing the victory.
• The Wildcats had a 19-yard completion on the ensuing drive and a nine-yard gain, but a loss on a rushing attempt and an interception ended the game.  

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• IWU recorded 311 total yards, with 124 coming on the ground and 187 in the air. The Wildcats averaged 4.1 yards per rush and 10.4 yards per completion. Of the 16 first downs, seven came on the ground and nine through the air. 
• The Wildcats ran one more play than the Tigers, 69-68. 
• IWU led Olivet Nazarene in tackles, 78-63, and solo tackles, 42-39. Both teams had one takeaway, but the Wildcats were the lone team to force a fumble (two) and recover a fumble (one).  

GAME VITALS

• After having its first two games of the season cancelled in the fall, the Wildcats hit the field for the first time since Nov. 16, 2019. IWU falls to 0-1 on the season.

SERIES HISTORY

• This marks the first loss in the series for the Wildcats. IWU leads the all-time series 2-1, having won 40-36 on Oct. 27, 2018 and 28-24 on Sept. 28, 2019. 

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