(LEBANON, Ill., Sept. 18)—The McKendree University football team opened defense of its Mid-States Football Association-Midwest League championship with a 58-3 victory Saturday evening at home against Iowa Wesleyan College.
The Bearcats, ranked No. 14 in the NAIA, piled up 474 yards of total offense and forced three Tigers' turnovers in bouncing back from a 33-point loss last week at Marian University. McKendree improves to 3-1 overall and will begin a three-game road swing next Saturday with an MSFA Midwest League contest at Saint Ambrose University. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. in Davenport, Iowa.
“I thought we played closer to our style of football tonight,” said McKendree head coach Carl Poelker. “I really like the way we started going after it on both sides of the football. I was extremely proud of our second unit tonight. They came in and really fired off the ball.”
McKendree scored on seven of its first eight possessions against Iowa Wesleyan, including a pair of touchdowns off Tiger turnovers. Iowa Wesleyan (0-4, 0-1 MSFA Midwest) took the opening kickoff and drove 11 plays before McKendree senior defensive back Ryan Smith (Cahokia, Ill./Cahokia) (Cahokia, Ill./Cahokia) intercepted a pass by Kevin McConnell and returned it to the Bearcats' 45-yard line. Four plays later, senior fullback Joe Beimfohr (Nashville, Ill./Nashville) (Nashville, Ill./Nashville) scored from a yard out for a 7-0 McKendree lead.
Senior kicker Jordan Fark (Nashville, Ill./Nashville) (Nashville, Ill./Nashville) booted a 44-yard field goal on McKendree's second possession to extend the margin to 10-0. On the first play of the second quarter, junior quarterback Austin Fisher (Washington, IL/Washington) (Washington, Ill./Washington) threw the first of his three touchdown passes on the night, a 16-yard strike to junior tight end Jake Strausbaugh (Belleville, Ill./Belleville East) to build a 17-0 lead. That score came after an interception by junior defensive lineman J.T. Smith (Clinton, Ill./Clinton) (Clinton, Ill./Clinton) late in the first quarter.
Beimfohr added his second scoring run of the night, a 10-yard burst, to give McKendree a 24-0 advantage. Iowa Wesleyan then followed with its only points of the contest on a 29-yard field goal by Kris Dolinsky with 3:41 left until halftime.
With just 1:50 left in the opening half, Fisher connected with junior wide receiver Travis Brown (St. Louis, MO/Mehlville) (St. Louis, Mo./Mehlville) on a 41-yard touchdown pass, giving McKendree a 31-3 lead at the half.
McKendree needed just four plays to score after taking the second-half kickoff. Fisher threw his final TD pass of the night, a 37-yard connection with sophomore wide receiver Nick Jones (Murphysboro, IL/Murphysboro) (Murphysboro, Ill./Murphysboro). Following a three-and-out by Iowa Wesleyan, McKendree took possession at the Tigers' 48-yard line. A 42-yard run by Beimfohr down to the six-yard line was followed by a touchdown run by senior running back Jimmy Berezik (Fraser, Mich./De La Salle) (Fraser, Mich./De La Salle) to push the Bearcats in front 45-3.
The Bearcats' final two scores came in the fourth quarter on a three-yard touchdown run by senior running back Nick Schrock (Waterloo, IL/Waterloo) (Waterloo, Ill./Waterloo) and a 14-yard scamper by freshman running back Jake Wagner (Belleville, Ill./Belleville West).
Fisher completed 8-of-12 pass attempts against Iowa Wesleyan for 143 yards. Fisher hit seven different receivers on the night. Junior wide receiver Myron Hicks (Sauk Village, IL/Bloom Trail) (Sauk Village, Ill./Bloom Trail) was the only McKendree with two receptions in the contest.
Senior running back Marlone Chenault (Bellwood, Ill./Proviso East) (Bellwood, Ill./Proviso East) led a balanced rushing attack for McKendree with 65 yards on just five carries. Beimfohr added 63 yards on seven rushes while Berezik chipped in with 61 yards on seven attempts.
Junior linebacker Josh Atwood (Chatham, IL/Glenwood) (Chatham, Ill./Glenwood), sophomore linebacker Melvin Banks (Jacksonville, N.C./Mascoutah) (Jacksonville, N.C./Mascoutah) and junior linebacker Jason Rejfek (Arlington Heights, IL/John Hersey) (Arlington Heights, Ill./John Hersey) each had five tackles to lead McKendree. Sophomore defensive lineman Sherrod Stancil (Naperville, IL/Waubonsie Valley) (Naperville, Ill./Waubonsie Valley) had two of the Bearcats' three quarterback sacks against Iowa Wesleyan.
