Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Turnovers
Time of Poss.
For a second consecutive week, the North Central College football team established new season highs for points and total yards in a game Saturday, dictating terms from the first possession in a 60-21 triumph over Carroll University at Schneider Stadium.
The Cardinals (7-1, 5-1 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin) scored touchdowns on their first four drives and forced punts the first five times the defense took the field to spot themselves a large early advantage and never looked back. North Central's 60 points and 562 total yards outdid the 54 points and 538 yards the Cardinals turned in last week in a 54-2 victory over Augustana College. North Central's point total is also the highest achieved by any CCIW team in conference play this season.
North Central's first offensive play was a 68-yard play-action pass from Broc Rutter to Jake Beesley, and Rutter connected with Michael Sfikas on an eight-yard touchdown pass two plays later. Rutter threw a 36-yard scoring pass to Joshua Ruiz with 8:18 left in the first quarter to double the lead to 14-0, and Austin Breunig followed with touchdown runs of six and eight yards to net a 28-0 lead with 9:56 still to play in the first half. Zane Lodico took a handoff and rambled 34 yards to the end zone with 2:57 on the clock to boost the lead to 34-0 before the Pioneers (1-7, 1-5 CCIW) got on the board with a 33-yard TD pass from Colton Bahling to Brandon Ehrke just before halftime.
Rutter threw for two more touchdowns in the third period before the Cardinals' starters left the game, a 19-yarder to Ruiz and a three-yard dart to Sfikas. Backup quarterback Alec Fidan led the Cardinals down the field on their next drive, taking the ball himself for a 10-yard scoring run near the end of the third period. North Central's final scoring drive finished with Lodico charging through the middle of the line for a one-yard TD run with 5:30 remaining.
Rutter completed 12 of 14 passes for 233 yards, while Breunig gained a season-best 168 yards on 21 carries. It was the fifth 100-yard rushing performance of the season for Breunig and the first for Lodico, who rolled up 108 yards on 11 rushes. Sfikas hauled in five passes for 140 yards, while Beesley's three catches netted him 122 yards, nearly equal to his yardage for the season heading into the game.
The Cardinals' defense allowed just four total rushing yards, marking the fourth-lowest single-game total ever recorded by a North Central opponent. Tommy Sora led the way with seven tackles, including two tackles for loss and 1.5 quarterback sacks, while DJ Warkenthien recorded two sacks and Kylee Dorseyrecovered a fumble.
North Central hosts Carthage College (6-2, 4-2) on Saturday at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium. Senior Day activities will be conducted prior to the 1:00 p.m. kickoff.