ALLIANCE, Ohio – The No. 2 nationally ranked Mount Union football team had a dominant 62-7 homecoming win over Otterbein on Saturday at Kehres Stadium.
Almost half of Mount Union's points came from veteran running backs graduate
Darnell Williams (Cleveland, OH/John Adams) and senior
Shaun Thomas (Lima, OH/Lima Central Catholic).
Williams ran for a career-high 163 yards with two touchdowns, including a long rush of 35. Williams averaged 12.5 yards per carry. Thomas totaled a career-best three touchdowns, with two on the ground and one receiving.
Freshman QB
Mikey Maloney (Concord Township, OH/Painesville Riverside) scored the first touchdown with a two-yard rushing score on Mount Union's opening drive. Otterbein (0-4, 0-3 OAC) tied it with a late first-quarter score; however, the Purple Raiders would outscore the Cardinals 55-7 for the remainder of the game.
Senior WR
Nick Turner (Strongsville, OH/Strongsville) caught a 19-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
A pair of freshmen shined in the fourth quarter as RB
Lucas Weaver (Barberton, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) scored from 15 yards out and freshman DB Jaeson Anderson (Akron, Ohio/Buchtel) returned an interception 95 yards for a touchdown—the second-longest return in school history (there have been a pair of 100-yard returns).
Mount Union (4-0, 2-0 OAC) scored on eight of its nine drives (not including when the clock expired to end the first half). The Purple Raiders were 6-for-6 on red-zone opportunities.
The Raiders outgained the Cardinals 449 to 290 in total yards, including 286-142 on the ground.
Freshman LB
Gavin Ehrhardt (Avon, OH/Avon) led the defense with a career-high 11 tackles, including a tackle for loss. Senior CB
Kosta Thrasivoulou (North Ridgeville, OH/North Ridgeville) snagged his first interception as a Raider. Senior LB
Keenan Cruz (Lutz, FL/George M. Steinbrenner) registered a game and career-high three tackles for loss.
Mount Union will next travel to Wilmington on Saturday, Oct. 11, with a 1:30 p.m. kickoff.
