DePauw Comes Back Twice in the Fourth for Program’s First Win at Wittenberg

SPRINGIELD, OH ­— Gus Baumgartner’s 1-yard run with 2:01 left gave DePauw a 17-14 lead and the defense stopped the hosts near midfield as the visiting Tigers won for the first time at Wittenberg in eight tries. DePauw moved to 4-1 overall and 4-0 in the North Coast Athletic Conference, while the host Tigers dropped to 2-3 overall and 2-2 in the NCAC.

Wittenberg took a 7-0 lead into the fourth with the lone points coming on Bryce Anderson’s 2-yard run with 13:04 left in the second quarter.

Following a short Wittenberg punt early in the fourth, DePauw took over on the hosts’ 33. The drive stalled at the Wittenberg 16, but Joe Sullivan nailed a 33-yard field goal with 12:00 remaining to trim the deficit to 7-3.

Wittenberg started the ensuing drive on its own 20 and, on the first play of the drive, DePauw linebacker Luke Marsh intercepted Bobby Froehlich’s pass at the Wittenberg 30 and returned it all the way for a score to lift the Tigers to a 10-7 advantage with 11:43 left.

DePauw’s defense forced a three-and-out and the offense took over on its own 38. The Tigers took 5:23 off the clock before the drive stalled at the Wittenberg 20. Sullivan’s 37-yard field goal try was blocked by Anthony Pedro and scooped up by Michael Fiessinger who took it 80 yards for a score. Brandon Goodwin’s point-after made it 14-10 in favor of the hosts with 4:47 remaining.

The Tigers embarked on their eventual game-winning series from their own 27. Andries completed a 15-yard pass to Trey Shaw on the first play and then converted a third down with a 13-yard pass to Baumgartner. Danny Sheehan picked up five on the ground before Andries connected with Jaylon Smith for a 12-yard gain to the Wittenberg 28. Andries then kept it for 25 yards to the 3 and added another 2-yard run which set up Baumgartner’s winning score.

Wittenberg took over on its own 7 after the kickoff and picked up a couple of first downs before the DePauw defense held at the Wittenberg 43.

DePauw outgained Wittenberg, 374-248, and held a 108-55 edge on the ground as well as a 23-16 advantage in first downs.

Baumgartner rushed for a game-high 86 yards on 20 carries, while Andries completed 22 of 39 for 266 yards. Shaw caught seven for 108 yards, while Smith totaled six catches for 64 yards.

Anderson led Wittenberg with 31 rushing yards on 17 tries and Froehlich completed 17 of 35 passes for 193 yards. Jake Saus caught four for 75 yards and Gene Nobles added four receptions for 42 yards.

Josh Coons led the DePauw defense with six tackles, while Brevon Gude led with two tackles for losses totaling six yards including a 4-yard sack.

Cameron Snurr led Wittenberg with nine tackles and Grant Hollinger followed with seven. Four different Wittenberg players had one sack each.

DePauw returns home on Saturday, October 16, when it hosts Ohio Wesleyan in an NCAC matchup at 1 p.m.