Defiance running stops Adrian

Adrian receiver Brad Maska, left, and Defiance defensive back Craig Munro can't reach this pass. Defiance improved to 2-0.

DEFIANCE - With all of the Division I-A football games called off because of the recent terrorist attacks, and most of the Division I-AA games also wiped out, yesterday was the time for the smaller-division schools to shine.

And Division III Defiance College certainly did that at Coressel Stadium.

Maurice Hooker rushed for 146 yards and one touchdown and Mike Moran (Bedford High School) added 113 yards on 10 carries as the Yellow Jackets improved to 2-0 with a 28-15 non-conference win over Adrian.

“I think we played pretty well, considering the circumstances,'' Defiance quarterback Kevin Kelly said. “But there's still a lot of room for improvement, and there's still a lot of things we need to work on.''

Defiance scored on its first two possessions to take a 15-0 lead against the Bulldogs (0-2).

On the first score, Kelly hit Hooker with a swing pass in the left flat and Hooker carried the ball to the 1, where he fumbled. But fullback Tim Szegda fell on the loose ball in the end zone for a touchdown, then ran for the two-point conversion with 6:36 remaining in the first quarter.

On the first play of the second quarter, Kelly scored on a one-yard run.

Defiance held Adrian to minus-3 yards rushing and 89 yards total offense in the first half.

“In the first half, we played pretty well,'' said Defiance coach Greg Pscodna, a 1986 Adrian graduate. “And we decided to run the ball in the second half. I have to give our offensive line a lot of credit and our running backs did a great job.''

Hooker had 113 yards in the second half and Moran added 81 yards. Hooker also scored on a five-yard run in the fourth quarter. Matt Daniel also kicked field goals of 21 and 28 yards in the second half.

Kevin Bostelman (Archbold High) kicked a 36-yard field goal in the third quarter for Adrian's first score, then caught a 15-yard touchdown pass from Joe Davis early in the fourth quarter.

The Bulldogs closed out their scoring with 1:59 remaining when Davis tossed a 24-yard scoring strike to Gabriel Coble. Davis completed 19 of 34 passes for 227 yards, but was sacked twice and intercepted once.

Defiance finished with 433 yards offense, including 336 on the ground, to go along with 15 rushing first downs.

Adrian was held to 65 yards rushing.

“You have to give Defiance a lot of credit,'' Adrian coach Jim Lyall said. “They came right at us. They are a very physical football team.''

“I'm relieved,'' Pscodna said. “I am just glad this game is over and this week is behind us. Hopefully, next week things will be a whole lot better.''

BLUFFTON 23, THIEL 20

BLUFFTON - Adam Burgess kicked a 42-yard field goal as time expired for Bluffton.

Thiel (0-3) scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns, tying the game at 20-20 on Donte Harris' five-yard pass from Daryl Moore with 2:18 left.

Bluffton (1-2) then moved the ball to the 25-yard line with no timeouts and the clock running. The snap from center came with one second left.

Burgess had missed a 42-yard field goal earlier.

Jovan Johnson carried 34 times for 165 yards and a touchdown for the Beavers.

CAPITAL 45, HEIDELBERG 22

COLUMBUS - Rayshaun Gales ran for two touchdowns and Dan Bartholomew threw a pair of scoring passes to Dan Petersen for Capital.

Gales scored on runs of 11 and 2 yards while gaining 58 yards on 12 carries for Capital (2-0, 1-0 Ohio Conference). Bartholomew completed 14-of-16 passes for 191 yards without an interception. His TD passes to Petersen covered 18 and 15 yards.

Jimmy Smith added a 71-yard punt return for a touchdown and Ron Swearingin had 23 tackles and a 45-yard interception return for another score.

Gary Tope gained 115 yards on 28 carries for Heidelberg (0-2, 0-1) and scored on a three-yard run.

B.J. Dwyer threw two TD passes for the 'Berg - 21 yards to Jim Stetka and three yards to Jake Moore, who made nine catches.

CLARION 27, TIFFIN 14

CLARION, Pa. - Linebacker Dennis Yu had an interception and caused two fumbles, and Clarion's defense forced four Tiffin turnovers.

Clarion (1-2) scored four straight touchdowns after Tiffin (0-3) took an early 7-0 lead on quarterback Joe Perchinske's three-yard TD run.

Perchinske completed 18 of 30 passes for 222 yards. Nii Hammond rushed for 86 yards on 20 carries for Tiffin.

Perchinske, who went 18-of-30 for 222 yards, threw a 29-yard TD pass to Terry Dalhite with 10 seconds left in the game.

ASHLAND 36, FINDLAY 19

FINDLAY - Matt McCullough passed for 268 yards and two touchdowns and Marcus Mitchell added 133 yards rushing and two scores for Ashland.

McCullough hit Erik Coblentz on a 68-yard TD pass with 5:05 to go in the second quarter, and Mitchell scored on a 4-yard run four minutes later to give the Eagles (2-1, 1-1 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) a 19-0 lead.

After Findlay (0-3, 0-2) cut it to 22-7 on Robert Campbell's 8-yard TD run early in the third quarter, Mitchell broke off an 81-yard touchdown run.

The Oilers' Jeff Fraser was 14-of-22 for 240 yards with one TD.