An 80-yard TD pass gave Wabash a one-point lead and an interception on the final drive ended any comeback effort in Saturday’s 24-23 Wabash victory over Denison in a North Coast Athletic Conference football game at Little Giant Stadium.
Wabash improved to 7-1 overall and 6-0 in NCAC games to remain in a tie with DePauw University for first place in the conference standings. Denison moved to 4-4 overall and 4-2 in NCAC games.
The Little Giants trailed 23-17 with 8:14 remaining in the game after Denison capped a nine-play, 77-yard drive with a 10-yard run by Trey Fabrocini. Wabash took the ensuing kickoff and set up on the 25-yard line. A false start penalty moved the ball back to the 20, where sophomore quarterback Brand Campbell took the first snap of the drive.
Campbell lofted a pass to the left side of the field, connecting with Tim Miller, who raced to the end zone. Brody Rucker added the extra point to give Wabash a 24-23 lead. Two drives later, after a Wabash punt, the Big Red took over at their 17-yard line with 1:49 remaining in the game. Denison moved the football to the 39-yard line and faced a third-and-fifteen with one minute on the game clock.
Denison freshman quarterback Tyler Green, who completed 24-of-40 passes for 364 yards and two touchdowns to that point of the game, fired a pass toward the Big Red sideline, looking to keep the drive alive. Wabash linebacker Gavin Ruppert rushed the pass attempt, and defensive back Mike Holsclaw snared his third interception of the season to secure the Wabash victory.
The two teams combined for 908 yards of offense. Wabash ran for 132 yards and threw for another 345, with Campbell completing 18 of 24 passes with two touchdowns. He connected on a 32-yard TD pass to tight end Connor Garrity in the third quarter to cut the Denison lead to 16-14. The Big Red were limited to 67 rushing yards on 24 carries. Fabrocini ran for 60 yards on 16 attempts after entering the game as the conference’s second-leading rusher. Wabash junior Xavier Tyler paced the Wabash rushing attack. The leader in rushing in the NCAC added 81 yards on 21 attempts to his season totals, giving him 803 and an average of 100.4 yards per game.
Cole Dickerson began the scoring for Wabash, picking up his fifth rushing touchdown of the season in the first quarter. The freshman finished the game with nine carries for 57 yards. Denison answered with a 27-yard field goal before taking a 9-7 lead after Green passing TD to Tommy Asleson late in the second quarter. The extra-point attempt drilled the left upright, providing only a 9-7 lead for the Big Red with a costly point left on the table.
Denison opened the second-half scoring with a 56-yard pass from Green to Billy Guzzo, part of six catches for 156 yards for the Big Red receiver. The Wabash TD strike to Garrity cut the Denison lead to 16-14 before Rucker added a 26-yard field goal in the opening minutes of the final period to put the Little Giants in front 17-16.
Ayden Salpietra led the Wabash defense with eight tackles, including six solos. Holsclaw made a season-best seven tackles, all solo stops, to go with his game-clinching interception. His pick extended the Little Giants’ streak of at least one interception in the past nine games dating back to last season. Wabash recorded five tackles for losses, with Jordan Cree and Jerry McBee each making one sack in the contest.
With Saturday’s home game in the books, Wabash hits the road for its final two regular season games. The Little Giants travel to Springfield, Ohio, on Saturday for a 1 p.m. contest at Wittenberg University before facing conference co-leader DePauw in the 130th Monon Bell Classic in Greencastle on Nov. 16.
