No. 1 Mount Union scores on three of final four possessions to defeat No. 7 Ohio Northern 30-10

J.J. Mihoci

By Tim Glon

| Box Score |

ADA --  Top-ranked Mount Union scored on three of its final four possessions to break a 10-10 tie and post a 30-10 Ohio Athletic Conference football victory over No. 7 Ohio Northern Saturday afternoon at Dial-Roberson Stadium.

The Polar Bears fall to 1-1 overall (0-1 Ohio Athletic Conference), while the Purple Raiders improve to 2-0, 1-0.

MtU put the game away by marching 71, 39 and 80 yards for TDs after the game was tied 10-10 midway through the third period.

Northern got on the board first when Jake Heaphy drilled a 36-yard field goal with just 2:43 gone in the contest.

Marvin Mitchell set up the score with an interception on the game's first play from scrimmage, giving ONU the ball at the Mount Union 30-yard line.

The field goal was the school-record 20th of Heaphy's career, breaking the previous mark of 19 set by J.R. Cipra from 1998-2001.

Chad Coward picked off another pass later in the period to give ONU the ball at the MtU 29-yard line, with 6:13 left in the first period.

But Mount Union thwarted the drive with an interception by Alex Ferrara at the 9-yard line.

Northern then drove to the MtU 33-yard line, but turned it over on downs.

The Purple Raiders went ahead 7-3 when Cecil Shorts took a direct snap from center and swept in from 4-yards out with 12:32 left in the first half, capping a 12-play, 67-yard drive.

Jay Carpenter made it 10-3 with a 28-yard field goal with 8:56 left in the half after MtU drove 54 yards in seven plays.

But Northern quickly answered when J.J. Mihoci returned the ensuing kickoff 88 yards for a TD, tying the game at 10-10 with 8:44 left before intermission.

It was the first kickoff return for a TD by ONU since Wes Hostetler turned the trick against John Carroll in 2005.

The score remained tied until Kurt Rocco hit Kyle Miller on a 15-yard TD pass with 4:57 left in the third period. MtU drove 71 yards in nine plays for the go-ahead score.

Scott Panchik plowed in from 6 yards out to give MtU a 24-10 lead with 12:49 left in the game.

Northern returned the ensuing kickoff to the Purple Raider 49-yard line.

ONU drove to the MtU 9-yard line, but Simmons was sacked on a 4th and 5-play, giving the Purple Raiders the ball at their own 20-yard line.

MtU the marched 80 yards in 15 plays, taking a full 8:50 off the clock to put the game away when Panchik swept in from 4 yards out to make it 30-10 with 1:30 left in the contest.

"There were two very good football teams going at it today," ONU head coach Dean Paul said. "We had some opportunities early and didn't take advantage of them. We missed some open receivers that may have scored and didn't take advantage of outstanding field position.

"We did have some positive things. We won the field position battle and had some outstanding special teams plays. I think our defense got worn down in the fourth quarter and they did a good job of grinding it out."

Mount Union out-gained ONU 396-80 in total offense, led by a 30-carry, 145-yard rushing effort by Panchik.

Kyle Simmons completed 8 of 26 passes for 56 yards and Brent Donley carried the ball 12 times for 18 yards and caught three passes for 16 yards to lead the ONU offense.

Gabe Washington, Richards and Coward all had career-highs of 16, 15 and 10 tackles, respectively, for the Polar Bears.

Washington also had a sack, 1.5 TFL and a pass broken up.

Judd Lutz had eight tackles to lead the Purple Raiders.

MUC has now won 35 consecutive regular season game and has won 91 consecutive regular season road games, dating to 1991.

Northern's 3-0 lead after the first period marked the first time since ONU's 21-14 win in 2005 that the Purple Raiders have trailed in a regular season game.

The Polar Bears will return to action next Saturday at No. 19-ranked Otterbein, which will be Northern's third consecutive contest against a ranked opponent.