Visiting Baldwin-Wallace tops Marietta 45-16 in Pioneers' home opener
Yellow Jackets break open game with 28-point third quarter

Sept. 27, 2008
MARIETTA, Ohio — Visiting Baldwin-Wallace College broke open a one-possession game with 28 points in the third quarter en route to a 45-16 victory over host Marietta College on Saturday (Sept. 27) night in front of a River City Bowl crowd at Don Drumm Stadium. The Pioneers fell to 1-2 overall and 0-2 in the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC). The Yellow Jackets improved to 2-1 overall and 2-0 in the OAC.

Baldwin-Wallace took a 3-0 lead on its opening possession. The Yellow Jackets marched all of the way down to the Pioneers’ seven-yard line before a sack by senior linebacker Grant Cowell (Perrysville/Loudonville) stalled the drive and forced a field goal attempt, which was good from 34 yards by Cory Ramos with 11:13 to play in the first quarter.

Marietta answered right back with a six-play, 67-yard drive to take its first lead of the game seven minutes into the first quarter. Junior quarterback Dexter Hughes (Woodsfield/Monroe Central) opened the drive with a 38-yard strike to sophomore wide out Marty Mueller (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills) to move the Pioneers into Yellow Jacket territory. Hughes then capped the drive with a 13-yard touchdown pass to junior running back Lamar Hunter (South Euclid/Brush) to put Marietta on top 6-3. The score remained 6-3 in favor of the Pioneers after the extra-point attempt failed.

The Yellow Jackets responded with a 14-play, 68-yard drive to take the lead for good with 1:37 to play in the frame. Junior quarterback Anthony Gardner scored from one-yard out, and Ramos made the extra point to put their team up 10-6.

Marietta pulled within a point, 10-9, midway through the second frame when senior kicker/defensive back Corey Lemke (Loudonville) connected on a 23-yard field goal. The Yellow Jackets extended their lead in the final minutes after freshman running back Tim Miker finished off a six-play, 60-yard drive with an 11-yard touchdown run to give Baldwin-Wallace the 17-9 lead at intermission.

In the third quarter, Baldwin-Wallace took complete control. Junior running back Kyrell Crook began the 28-point outburst with a four-yard touchdown run with 9:09 left in the quarter. Gardner then found senior Matt Lepley open for a 46-yard touchdown pass two minutes later. Gardner made it 38-9 following an 11-yard touchdown run with 3:58 to play in the frame. He then threw his second touchdown pass of the quarter, a 23-yard strike to junior wide out Steve Price, with 1:38 to go in the third quarter, giving Baldwin-Wallace a 45-9 advantage after three frames.

Marietta scored the lone points of the fourth frame when Hughes hit Mueller on a 22-yard touchdown pass with 5:18 left in the game, capping a 10-play, 86-yard drive. Baldwin-Wallace then ran out the clock on a 45-16 victory.

The Yellow Jackets dominated the time of possession, holding on to the ball for 34:41 while on defense for 25:19. Baldwin-Wallace overcame 10 penalties for 112 yards by racking up 543 total yards of offense, compared to 261 yards of total offense for Marietta. The Yellow Jackets threw for 375 yards and ran for 168 more. The Pioneers gained 69 yards on the ground and 192 yards on the ground.

Hughes finished the night by completing 14-of-29 passes and threw for 192 yards with a pair of touchdowns. Gardner hit 23-of-34 passes and threw for 358 yards with two scores.

Hunter paced Marietta’s ground attack with 17 rushes for 60 yards to go along with four receptions for 33 yards and one touchdown. Mueller also caught four passes for 89 yards and one score. Crook led the Yellow Jacket’s rushers with 16 carries for 62 yards, while Lepley paced the receivers with eight grabs for 93 yards and one touchdown reception.

Cowell led all tacklers with 13 total hits, including two sacks. Senior Clinton Thompson (Waverly, W.Va./Williamstown) added 11 hits, 10 of which were solo stops, while Lemke contributed nine total tackles. Senior Lee Yoder had a team-high six tackles for Baldwin-Wallace, while sophomore Richard Starr, senior Joe Kowalski and sophomore Ryan Dugan all added five hits in the win.

Marietta is back in action on Saturday (Oct. 4) when it travels to Columbus for a 1:30 p.m. match-up with fourth-ranked Capital University. The Crusaders remained undefeated with a 48-28 victory at home against Wilmington. The game can be heard live online at http://pioneers.marietta.edu/onlinebroadcasts.html.