Wittenberg football: Tigers 2-0 after shutout win

Sarley rushes for career high against Oberlin

The Wittenberg Tigers made the most of a long wait for their second game, blanking Oberlin 34-0 on Saturday at Edwards-Maurer Field.

No. 15 Wittenberg (2-0) beat Oberlin (2-1) for the 19th straight time and shut out the Yeomen for the first time since a 59-0 victory in 2013. The Tigers recorded a shutout in their home opener for the second straight season. A year ago, they beat Capital 34-0.

Here’s a recap of the game:

Top player: Sophomore running back DeShawn Sarley carried 27 times for a career-high 141 yards and scored two touchdowns. It was the third career 100-yard game for Sarley, who set his previous career high of 140 yards last season against Kenyon.

Key stat: Oberlin failed to convert on all 11 of its third-down attempts and two fourth-down plays. Oberlin punted seven times.

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Big play: Freshman Sam Kayser caught a 57-yard touchdown pass from Jake Kennedy in the fourth quarter. Kayser totalled three catches for 75 yards. They were his first three career catches. He did not make a catch in the opener.

Turning point: Wittenberg led 7-0 when Kennedy threw an interception on the fourth drive of the game. Oberlin got the ball back, but the Tigers forced a punt from the Oberlin 48-yard line. Sarley scored on a 2-yard run on the next possession to give Wittenberg a 14-0 halftime lead.

Defensive leader: Cornerback Michael Ford led the Tigers with 11 tackles. He also had an interception, a sack and two pass break-ups.

Strong follow-up: Springfield grad Thaddeus Snodgrass, who starred in the season opener with two touchdown catches against Westminster on Sept. 2, had three receptions for 58 yards.

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Versatility award: Kenton Ridge grad Jeff Tiffner caught two passes for 27 yards. He also attempted one pass and completed it for 21 yards. He returned two punts for 15 yards.

Big picture: The Tigers were one of four teams to win their North Coast Athletic Conference opener Saturday, along with Denison, DePauw and Wabash, all of which are 2-0 overall.

Wooster (3-0 overall) sits atop the league with a 2-0 record. It won 49-35 at Allegheny on Sept. 16 and beat Ohio Wesleyan 38-20 at Wooster on Saturday.

Looking ahead: The Tigers play at Kenyon (0-3, 0-2) at 2 p.m. Saturday in Gambier. The Lords lost 62-7 at Wabash on Saturday.

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