The Wabash College football team snapped a three-game losing streak with a 38-7 victory at Denison University Saturday afternoon.
The Little Giants rebounded from losses to Wooster, Wittenberg, and Allegheny by opening up a 38-0 lead before losing the shutout in the final two minutes of the game. Wabash amassed 446 yards of total offense while holding the Big Red to 163. Denison would manage only 39 passing yards against the Wabash defense, completing five out of 21 passes with one interception.
Wabash’s defense hounded the Denison offensive attack all afternoon. Freshman Adrian Pynenberg (Montgomery, IL/Oswego Community) led the Little Giants with seven tackles, four solos and three assisted. He had one of two sacks by Wabash totaling 17 yards. Josh Foster (JR/Indianapolis, IN/Ben Davis) and Justin Gardiner (FR/Delphi, IN/Twin Lakes) split one for a total of five yards while Pynenberg’s solo sack went for 12.
The Little Giants had a running back go over the 100-yard mark for first time since the opening game of the season against Kalamazoo. Sophomore Aaron Lafitte (Goodyear, AZ/Ironwood) finished the game with 107 yards on 22 carries, his first trip over the century mark this year. He scored the first touchdown of the game in the early minutes of the second quarter on a five-yard run to make it a 14-0 games after two Mark Server (JR/Plainfield, IN/Plainfield) field goals in the first quarter and a Russ Harbaugh (JR/Evansville, IN/Evansville Bosse) to Eric Summers (JR/Indianapolis, IN/Cathedral) two-point conversion.
Harbaugh added a second touchdown pass in the second period. The junior connected with Geoff Walker (SO/Schererville, IN/Lake Central) from three yards out, giving Walker his first career score to put the Little Giants in front 21-0 at halftime. The Harbaugh-to-Walker scoring play capped a 13-play, 98-yard drive that trimmed 4:45 off the game clock. It was the longest drive from scrimmage of the year for the Little Giants, and the second-most number of plays on a scoring drive.
Harbaugh scored on a one-yard run with 6:24 left in the third quarter to put Wabash in front 28-0 on a series that started after a tipped pass by Denison quarterback Larry Cappetto was picked off by Darryl Kennon (SO/Tempe, AZ/McClintock) for his first career interception. One drive later it was Chris Ogden (JR/Schererville, IN/Lake Central) pounding the ball into the endzone from one yard out to finish a 10-play, 50-yard drive.
Server added another field goal midway through the fourth quarter. The Big Red ended the shutout with 1:51 left in the contest when Phil Bouwhuis raced into the endzone from the 10 yard line for Denison’s lone TD.
Harbaugh was 20-of-31 with two interceptions and one touchdown. Senior Brandon Clifton (Lafayette, IN/McCutcheon) led the Wabash receivers with seven catches for 110 yards, moving into 10th on the Wabash all-time receptions list with 122. Harbaugh’s effort moved him into eighth on the all-time passing list with 3,507 yards.
Wabash finishes the North Coast Athletic Conference portion of its season with a record of 4-3. The Little Giants, 6-3 overall, prepare for their final game of the 2004 season, the 111th Monon Bell Classic Saturday at home against DePauw University. Fewer than 1,000 tickets remain for the annual meeting for the 300-pound railroad bell from the Monon engine that traveled between Crawfordsville and Greencastle and was donated to the rivalry in 1932. Wabash leads the series 51-50-9 after a 37-20 in last year’s game in Greencastle. Kickoff at Byron P. Hollett Little Giant Stadium is set for 1:05 p.m.
QUICK HITTERS
--- Brandon Clifton moved from 13th to 10th on the Wabash career receptions list, passing Josh Bronaugh ’04 (117 catches), Mick Martin ’80 (118 catches), and Tony Altavilla ’85 (121 catches).
--- Clifton’s 110 receiving yards against Denison marks the fourth time in the last five games he’s topped the 100-yard mark in a contest.
--- Russ Harbaugh passed Bill Padgett ’92 (3,494) for eighth on the all-time Wabash passing list.
--- Chris Odgen ran for 149 yards against Kalamazoo College in the opening game of the season for Wabash, the only time a Wabash running back has topped 100 yards this season before Aaron Lafitte’s 107 yards against Denison.