STREAMWOOD, Ill. — Indiana Wesleyan overwhelmed Judson University on Saturday night with a commanding 79-21 road victory. The Wildcats' impressive point total ties the second-highest in program history.
Drew Dutton set a new single-game program record after running back two kickoff returns for touchdowns.
THE ESSENTIALS
- Location: Streamwood, Ill. | Streamwood High School
- Records: IWU: 2-1 | JU: 0-3
- NAIA Top-25 Ranking: IWU - #6 | JU – Unranked
FIRST QUARTER
- Indiana Wesleyan's Vincie Solano intercepted the Judson pass just 23 seconds into the game, setting up IWU's first possession.
- Arjun Lothe completed back-to-back passes to Isaac Smith, followed by a 20-yard touchdown rush by Cameron Morrison, giving Indiana Wesleyan an early 7-0 lead. This marked Morrison's first career rushing touchdown.
- The Wildcat defense turned over JU on 4th down, and Lothe responded with a 26-yard touchdown pass to Braxton Myers, extending the lead to 14-0.
- Judson missed a 40 yards field-goal, and IWU marched down the field in less than a minute to score off an Isaac Smith touchdown catch.
- With just 1:18 remaining in the quarter, Lothe hit Grant Irwin for a 75-yard touchdown pass, closing the quarter with the Wildcats ahead 27-0.
- Quintin Walker recorded a sack in the quarter.
SECOND QUARTER
- Indiana Wesleyan capitalized early with a 30-yard field goal by Josh Clifton at 12:12, extending their lead to 30-0.
- JU responded with a 52-yard touchdown pass from Freeman to Zach McGee, narrowing the gap to 31-7 with 8:43 remaining.
- A swift response came from Indiana Wesleyan as Drew Dutton returned a kickoff 75 yards for a touchdown at 8:33, quickly restoring a dominant 37-7 lead.
- Lothe threw his fourth touchdown of the first half on a 5-yard pass to Isaac Smith, making it 44-7.
- On the following drive, Da'Veon Turner forced a fumble deep in Judson territory that Anthony Cheesebourough recovered and returned for a touchdown, pushing Indiana Wesleyan further ahead to 51-7.
- Morrison punched in a touchdown from 3-yards out just before halftime to push the Wildcat lead to 58-7.
- Jojo Houston and Garrett Hathaway each recorded sacks in the quarter.
THIRD QUARTER
- At the 11:46 mark, Indiana Wesleyan began their drive with an 8-yard pass from Isaiah Petty to Dutton and a 10-yard rush by Morrison, but a fumble recovery by Nehemiah Alexan halted the momentum.
- Harrison Hannah capitalized on the drive with a 10-yard rushing touchdown for JU with 8:02 remaining, followed by Oscar Ortiz's successful extra point.
- On the ensuing kickoff, Dutton returned Ortiz's kickoff for a 95-yard touchdown, pushing the lead to 65-14. Dutton's performance set a program single-game record with two kickoff return touchdowns.
- Ethan Dutra recorded a sack in the quarter.
FOURTH QUARTER
- Brock Short ignited Indiana Wesleyan with a 23-yard touchdown run at 11:40, following a penalty that nullified a prior score.
- Jack Doty recovered a fumble on the kickoff at Judson University's 32-yard line, keeping the momentum with Indiana Wesleyan.
- The Eagles responded with a 92-yard touchdown pass from Hannah to Alexander with 7:59 remaining.
- Short countered swiftly with a 75-yard touchdown run, extending Indiana Wesleyan's advantage once more at 7:43. This impressive run was just one yard short of the program record.
OFFENSIVE LEADERS
- Arjun Lothe: 13-for-19, 270 yards, 4 TD.
- Brock Short: 6 carries, 127 yards, 2 TD, Long of 79 yards.
- Cameron Morrison: 7 carries, 79 yards, 2 TD.
- Grant Irwin: 2 receptions, 115 yards, 1 TD, Long of 75 yards.
- Braxton Myers: 2 receptions, 41 yards, 1 TD.
- Isaac Smith: 5 receptions, 35 yards, 2 TD.
DEFENSIVE LEADERS
SPECIAL TEAMS STANDOUTS
- Josh Clifton: 1-for-1 FG (30 yards), 8-for-9 PAT, 11 kickoffs for 644 yards (4 touchbacks).
- Drew Dutton: 2 kickoff returns for 170 yards and 2 TD's.
TEAM COMPARISON
- Total Offense: IWU 585 yards (287 pass, 298 rush); JU 353 yards (266 pass, 87 rush).
- First Downs: IWU 29, JU 18.
- Defensive Turnovers: IWU 4 (2 INT, 2 fumbles), JU 1 (1 INT, 1 fumble).
- Sacks: IWU 4 for -25 yards; JU 0.
- Penalties: IWU 14 for 115 yards; JU 14 for 149 yards
- Time of Possession: IWU 27:35, JU 29:25.
RODE PERSPECTIVE
- "I was proud of how our guys prepared all week," said Head Coach Andrew Rode. "The offense had a few explosives and the defense played well."
LOOKING FORWARD
- IWU returns to Wildcat Stadium on September 20 against Olivet Nazarene at 12:00PM ET.
- Tickets can be purchased at IWUWildcats.com/tickets or by clicking HERE.
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