FOREST CITY – Iowa Wesleyan College broke through for its first football win in two years on Saturday, putting together a complete team effort in steamrolling past Waldorf College, 41-0, in its 2008 season opener at Bolstorff Field in Forest City.
Bryan Abihider (Sr.-Hemet, Calif.) connected with Lawrence Moore (So.-Country Club Hills, Ill.) for four touchdowns as the Tigers rolled up 464 yards of offense. Defensively, IWC held the Warriors to 188 yards of total offense and forced nine punts.
The win snapped IWC’s 20-game losing streak dating back to the 2006 season. The Tigers picked up their first win since the season opener in 2006, a 10-3 win over Waldorf.
“It was a total team effort,” said IWC Head Coach Jason Smelser. “Offense, defense, special teams…we played well in all areas.”
The Tigers jumped on the Warriors from the start. Kris Fleming (Jr.-Chicago, Ill.) recovered a fumble at the Waldorf 36 on the third play of the game, and on IWC’s first offensive play Greg Fields (So.-St. Louis, Mo.) took a short pass from Abihider and weaved through the defense for a touchdown.
Wesleyan scored three more times in the first half on its way to building a 27-0 halftime lead. Derrick Chambers (So.-Champaign, Ill.) scored on a two-yard touchdown run, and Moore and Abihider connected for touchdown passes of 11 and 26 yards, the second coming with 6:03 left in the first half.
Waldorf gained 117 yards in the first half but was hurt by its two fumbles, including a second one in the second quarter that came in IWC territory. The Warriors also converted just 2 of 9 third down conversions in the first half and made 5 of 16 tries on third down in the game.
IWC’s offense was efficient throughout. The Tigers converted 11 of 16 third downs, including one in the third quarter when Abihider, who threw for five touchdowns in the game, connected with Moore on a one-yard toss to make it 34-0. The two connected one more time in the fourth quarter as Moore got behind the defense and Abihider hit him in stride for a 53-yard score with 7:47 left in the game.
Abihider finished the game completing 20 of 32 passes for 286 yards. The Tiger offensive line also gave a superb performance, allowing just one sack and paving the way for 180 yards rushing, including Jaren Maybin (Jr.-Baltimore, Md.) rushing 20 times for 96 yards.
Moore caught eight passes total for 132 yards, the first 100-yard receiving game for an IWC receiver since 2004. His four touchdown catches was one short of the school record set by Bruce Carter against Concordia (Wis.) University Nov. 9, 1991.
The Tiger defense’s performance was complete and balanced with a number of players coming through. Eric Stepney (So.-St. Louis, Mo.) and Quentin Lang (Sr.-Bellwood, Ill.) led the team in tackles with seven and six, respectively. Kyle DeRossett (Sr.-Dupo, Ill.), Dominique Richards (So.-Bronx, N.Y.) and Carl Granum (Jr.-Brooklyn, N.Y.) all had sacks, and Jason Amy (Jr.-Lake Elsinore, Calif.) came up from his cornerback position for a pair of key tackles in the backfield to stop drives.
Waldorf (0-2 overall) was led offensively by Thomas Martin, who rushed for 64 yards on 11 carries. Quarterback RocTerrious Hobbs completed 9 of 24 passes for just 49 yards.
The Tigers are back in action next Saturday on the road against the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. The game in Stevens Point, Wis. will take place at 1 pm. IWC will play its first home game in two weeks, facing Peru State (Neb.) College Sept. 20 at 1 pm.
For more information regarding the IWC football program or any of the Tiger athletic teams, contact sports information director Adam Glatczak (319-385-6306 phone; 319-385-6384 FAX; aglatczak@iwc.edu e-mail) or log on to IWC's athletics web site at www.iwc.edu/athletics.
