Wooster Shutout for First Time in 100 Games

Shaun Swearingen

The College of Wooster football team got off to a slow start Saturday afternoon in Springfield, Ohio, and never recovered as Wittenberg University rolled to a 45-0 North Coast Athletic Conference victory in a match-up of rivals battling to finish in the top-half of the league standings.

Noteworthy, Wooster (6-3, 3-3 NCAC), which slips into a tie for fifth-place, had played exactly 100 games since last being shutout – a 33-0 setback at Trinity (Texas) University on Nov. 11, 1995.

The teams exchanged 35-yard punts to start the game, but then Wittenberg (5-4, 5-1 NCAC) exploded for 21 points during a 7:51 stretch. The Tigers marched 52 yards in seven plays on their second possession, capped by Geron Stokes’ one-yard quarterback sneak, and following the ensuing kickoff, they forced a Fighting Scot fumble, which was brought back 36 yards by Mitch Fonseca for a touchdown. On its next offensive series, Wittenberg went to Tristan Murray, who reeled off a 69-yard run on the first play, and two plays later, Stokes found Nate Cherry in the end zone on a nine-yard pass to make it 21-0.

Early in the second quarter, the Tigers added another touchdown, with the help of Wooster. The Scots were unable to get a punt off deep in their own territory, as Wittenberg took over on the four-yard line and Murray took it in on the ensuing play.

Thanks in part to a Darren Farmer (Prospect, Ohio / Marion Pleasant) fumble recovery late in the second when the Tigers were threatening to score again, Wooster was still within striking distance at halftime (28-0).

The second half didn’t go much better for the Scots, though, as Wittenberg tacked on 10 more points in the third quarter and a touchdown in the fourth for the final margin.

Wooster was without the services of two-time all-conference quarterback Justin Schafer (Bethesda, Ohio / Union Local) due to injury for the second-straight week, and this time the offense stuttered. The Scots were held to 13 first downs and 149 yards, and did not advance the ball inside the red zone. Wooster’s best drive went 42 yards to the Tiger 34-yard line before turning it over on downs.

Individually, freshman tailback Dustin Sheppard (Johnstown, Ohio / Johnstown-Monroe) netted 55 yards on 17 rushes. After a school-record 423 passing yards last week, Bobby Reiff (Bay Village, Ohio / Bay) completed 15-of-40 attempts through the air for 125 yards while being sacked six times. His top target was Shaun Swearingen, who hauled in six of those passes for a game-high 79 receiving yards.

For Wittenberg, Murray ended up with 174 yards on 17 carries, while Stokes was 17-of-26 for 173 yards.

Defensively, the Scots’ junior outside linebacker Andre Smith (Hendersonville, Tenn. / Beech) was credited with eight tackles, including the 200th of his career, and a pass breakup.

Next Saturday, Wooster looks to end 2005 on a high note when it welcomes Ohio Wesleyan University (6-3, 4-2 NCAC), currently in fourth-place, to John P. Papp Stadium for a 1 p.m. kickoff.