School-Record Effort in Culver-Stockton Triumph
William Penn University Statesmen Football. (file photo)
Canton, Mo.–A 35-point first quarter was just the start of a record-breaking 73-20 Heart of America Athletic Conference North Division win by #14 William Penn over Culver-Stockton Saturday.
The Statesmen (6-2, 2-0 North) set a new program record with their 73 points, breaking the old record of 70 set on October 30, 2010 against Peru State (Neb.).
William Penn jumped out on top immediately and never looked back. Jatavius Stewart (Rock Hill, S.C., Biology) returned the opening kickoff 48 yards into Wildcat territory and four plays from scrimmage later, Nathan Tvedt (Sr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Business Management) darted into the endzone from 31 yards out. The senior rushed just twice on the afternoon, scoring both times on runs of 31 and 13 yards.
After a quick three-and-out defensive stop, Tyler Hafner (Sr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Communications) doubled the advantage with an 81-yard scamper to cap a three-play, 92-yard drive. Hafner collected 169 yards and two touchdowns on only nine carries. Overall, the visitors outgained the hosts 516-369, including 466 yards on the ground.
Another stop by the defense and a poor punt by Culver-Stockton (0-8, 0-2 North) set up the navy and gold for another quick six-point celebration. Continuing the trend of short possessions, WPU needed just two plays to make it 21-0. This time, it was Jonathan Ward (So., Terry, Miss., Undecided) who had the big rush, going 31 yards to paydirt. He concluded the day with 56 yards on five rushes.
The Statesmen refused to give an inch on defense, while the offense finally got stopped as well. After their own three-and-out, the offense gained another possession and a six-play, 70-yard drive was finished by an 11-yard run from Amos Johnson (So., Rock Island, Ill., Mechanical Engineering).
One of the best quarters in program history came to a close when Hafner hooked up with Stewart on a 38-yard pass play as time expired. The duo finished with two connections for 47 yards; Hafner had three completions for 50 yards.
The second quarter actually went in favor of the Wildcats by a 14-7 tally as Nate Van Veldhuizen (Fr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Mechanical Engineering) cashed in from 28 yards away. Van Veldhuizen had 66 yards in the victory.
Although the matchup was well in hand, WPU did not lay off the accelerator in the third quarter as Tvedt (13 yards) and Hafner (46 yards) both had rushing touchdowns. Samson Tamijani (Fr., Houston, Texas, Communications) pushed the lead to 59-14 as he got into the action with a 32-yard field goal.
C-SC added its final tally late in the third to cut the margin to 59-20.
In the fourth period, Carl Sivels (Fr., Washington, Iowa, Physical Education) scored on a six-yard run and offensive lineman Beau Picard (Fr., Ozark, Mo., Biology) recovered a fumble by Kyle Nitz (Sr., Broken Arrow, Okla., Industrial Technology) in the endzone to wrap up the scoring.
The Statesmen defense also produced some big plays Saturday, forcing four turnovers. Antonio Brown (Jr., Midwest City, Okla., Undecided) picked off two passes, while Isaac Samek (Sr., Bolivar, Mo., Industrial Technology) had one interception in addition to five tackles.
Malik Young (Jr., Peoria, Ill., Physical Education) also forced a fumble that was recovered by Jake Baptiste (So., Salt Lake City, Utah, Psychology). Kevin Shrauger (Sr., Nixa, Mo., Physical Education) and Walter Eastwood (Jr., Garden City, Mo., Computer Science) posted six stops each and Taylan Ybarra (Sr., Wellington, Kan., Education) managed a quarterback sack.
Next Up: William Penn returns to Oskaloosa next Saturday to host Benedictine (Kan.) in North Division play at 11 a.m. In addition to the normal webstreaming/TV/radio broadcasts, the game will also be viewed on the internet at ESPN3 and on KSMO-TV in the Kansas City area.
