MILWAUKEE – Michael Whitley (So.-Vidalia, La.) accounted for 300 yards of offense and the Lakeland College defense shut out Wisconsin Lutheran College for three quarters, and that combination was enough in the Muskies' 15-13 win Saturday afternoon at WLC's Raabe Stadium.
Lakeland got a big leg up in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference race, winning its conference opener against one of its fellow tri-champions from a year ago. The Muskies also defeated the Warriors for the third straight year, this time spoiling their Homecoming while improving to 2-2 overall.
Lakeland was able to prevail on a dreary, windy day with tough defense, enough offense early to build a 15-0 lead, and then a final clutch drive late in the fourth quarter after Wisconsin Lutheran (2-2 overall) closed within two points.
The Muskies kept the Warriors scoreless for the first three quarters and stuffed them on the ground all day, allowing just 70 yards on 34 rush attempts. The defensive effort allowed Lakeland to play from ahead almost the entire game, starting with an 18-yard field goal by Conrad Foss (Fr.-Muskegon, Mich.) midway through the first quarter for a 3-0 lead. WLC also had just 138 yards of total offense in the first half and 218 through three quarters before warming up in the fourth quarter.
Whitley led the Muskies' offense in the air and on the ground, completing 18 of 30 passes for 218 yards and an 11-yard touchdown pass to Michael Esiobu (Sr.-Chicago, Ill.) in the second quarter that made the score 9-0. He also rushed 22 times for 82 yards and a one-yard sneak late in the third quarter to put Lakeland ahead 15-0.
The offense also had just enough big plays to spark drives. Whitley broke free for 45 yards and later hit running backEldrada Meeks (Fr.-Southfield, Mich.) for 44 yards on the first-quarter drive that led to the team's opening points.
Meeks also accounted for a pair of first downs and Marvin Warfield (Sr.-North Chicago, Ill.) had a big run on a key drive late in the fourth quarter that didn't score points but put a serious dent in the Warriors' chances of completing a comeback.
Taking over at their own 25 with 6:09 left in the fourth quarter and after Wisconsin Lutheran had cut the lead to two points, Lakeland went 73 yards in 11 plays and chewed up 3:47 off the clock. Meeks rushed for one first down, caught an 11-yard pass for another, and Webster got the Muskies deep into Warriors territory with the longest run of his collegiate career, a 25-yard scamper down to the WLC 20.
The hosts got a pair of Gino DeGeorge-to-Mitch Skarban connections in the fourth quarter on touchdown passes of 41 and 21 yards to close in on Lakeland, but DeGeorge's two-point conversion pass failed with 6:09 left in the game. Wisconsin Lutheran had two chances in the final three minutes for a go-ahead score, but with drives starting at their own 2- and 8-yard line, respectively. The first ended on downs at their own 9-yard line, while the second starting with 18 seconds left got as far as the WLC 42 before time expired.
Romain Johnson (Sr.-Pontiac, Mich.) led the defense with 13 tackles, while Landon Derginer (Sr.-Marinette, Wis.) added nine tackles, a third-quarter interception, and two passes broken up. Josh Schneider (Sr.-Green Bay, Wis.) added six tackles plus three passes batted down and Ronnie Biggs (So.-Detroit, Mich.) added five tackles plus his first collegiate sack.
Meeks led Lakeland in receiving with four catches for 77 yards. Kezlow Smith (Sr.-Pontiac, Mich.) came into the day needing 71 yards to become the Muskies' all-time career receiving yards leader, but he'll have to wait another week to break the record after catching five passes for 40 yards against the Warriors.
Lakeland is back home next Saturday when it welcomes Concordia University Chicago for a conference game at 1 p.m. at Taylor Field.
Muskies get a leg up in NACC race with 15-13 win over Warriors
/seasons/2015/boxscores/20151003_4pz5.xml
2015
Lakeland
15
Wisconsin Lutheran
13
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lakeland (2-2) | 3 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 15 |
| Wisconsin Lutheran (1-3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 13 |
Oct 03, 2015