Delaware, Ohio – The No. 20 Wittenberg University football team got back to their winning ways on Saturday afternoon, taking down the Battling Bishops of Ohio Wesleyan 42-13 in their North Coast Athletic Conference matchup. The Tigers improved to 8-1 on the season and 7-1 in NCAC action with the 29-point win. Wittenberg accumulated 319 total yards of offense on the afternoon, reaching the 40-point scoring mark for the sixth time this season.
Game Breakdown
After the Battling Bishops found their way on the board first with a three play 55-yard scoring drive to start the game. The Wittenberg offense got their chance to match in the first quarter, driving 88-yards on eight plays, capped off with a 28-yard touchdown reception by Jeff Tiffner to bring the game back to even at 7-7. The Tigers doubled their lead at 14-7 before the end of the first quarter, as Sam Kayser hauled in a lone reception of the day of 21-yards to finish off a 13 play 83-yard Wittenberg scoring drive. Ohio Wesleyan would piece together one final more scoring drive before the half, going 22-yards on four plays before failing to convert on the extra point. Wittenberg would maintain the narrow 14-13 advantage at the break. It would be all Wittenberg in the second half, adding to their advantage. The Tigers outscored the Battling Bishops 28-0 through the final 30-minutes of action, while the offense for the red and white was responsible for just one score in the fourth quarter. Adding 21 points to the Wittenberg advantage was the Tiger defense, taking back three consecutive interceptions for touchdowns.
Who Stood Out
Both sides of the ball proved to be a scoring threat against the Battling Bishops, as the Tiger offense and defense each recorded three for the red and white. The Tigers racked up 20 first downs on the day, picking up 4.3 yards per play on 75 total plays from scrimmage. Senior Jake Kennedy amassed 200 yards, completing 17 of 32 passes with three touchdowns. Jaheem Washington finished as the Tigers leading rusher on the day, taking 15 carries for 84-yards, breaking out for a long of 22-yards. Tiffner would finish with two catches for 42-yards, adding in a long haul of 28-yards. The defense would shine with five takeaways, including two from Troy Jones including one returned for a touchdown, two from Jonathan Seay and one from Terrance Crowe. Seay would finish with eight tackles, including a half a tackle for a loss, a forced fumbled, and two interceptions returned for a combined 22-yards and a touchdown. Crowe finished with the longest interception return of the afternoon, taking the ball back 62-yards for the score.
UP NEXT
Wittenberg will wrap up the regular season with a trip to the College of Wooster on Saturday, Nov. 10 where they will take on the Fighting Scots at 1:00 PM.