The Wittenberg football team got a jolt over the weekend, losing its first regular season game since Nov. 4, 1997. The nationally ranked Tigers fell at Alma College 26-24 on a field goal with 2:20 remaining in the game and then falling one yard short of a crucial first down at the Alma 38-yard-line on the ensuing drive.

In the loss, which comes on the heels of blowout home victories over Urbana and Heidelberg to open the season, several Wittenberg players did play very well. Junior defensive end Allen D'Andrea (Naples, Fla./Barron Collier) had a team-high nine tackles, including three sacks. Junior running back Daniel Grove (Uhrichsville, Ohio/Claymont) had his second straight 100-yard game and scored two touchdowns in his third straight game. And senior wide receiverMichael Aljancic (Louisville, Ohio/Louisville) caught 10 passes - just two short of the Wittenberg record - for 143 yards.

Next up for the Tigers is a seven-game North Coast Athletic Conference schedule that will determine the team's postseason fate, beginning with Saturday's home contest opposite Wabash College, which is 1-1 on the season thus far. Last year, Wittenberg defeated the Little Giants 41-10 in a bizarre game that featured two lengthy delays and a change of venue.