The Baldwin-Wallace College defense forced five turnovers (4 interceptions and one fumble) and running backs Willie Jackson (Citrus Springs, Fla./Crystal River) and Tyler Lohr (Kent/Roosevelt) rushed for 119 and 112 yards as the Yellow Jackets defeated Marietta College, 17-7, today in an Ohio Athletic Conference game in the Don Drumm Stadium.

With the victory, the Yellow Jackets improved to 3-1 overall and 2-1 in the OAC.

Both teams were held scoreless both were responsible for causing three turnovers in the opening period. The Yellow Jackets first forced a fumble by senior linebacker Matt Higginbotham (Hartville/Uniontown Lake) and senior linebacker John Harasyn (Mentor) fell on the loose ball. B-W tallied its second takeaway when junior cornerback Brandon Russo (Olmsted Falls) intercepted from Marietta quarterback Andrew Keller. The Pioneers were able to intercept Yellow Jacket junior quarterback Ryan O’Rourke (Avon) in the back of the end zone.

In the second quarter, B-W and Marietta each continued to be plagued by turnovers as both teams each threw an interception. Sophomore corner back Kevin Johnson (Maple Heights/St. Ignatius) recorded his first career interception for the Yellow Jackets. B-W got the lone points of the half when sophomore placekicker Chris Mohler (Kent/Roosevelt) connected on his first career field goal from 20-yards as time expired.

The Pioneers took their first lead of the game when wide receiver Tannon Roberts caught the nine yard touchdown pass off the hands of senior linebacker Brett Thompson (Shelby) from quarterback Kyle Shackle with the 3:01 left in the third quarter. Nathan Zarnoksi tacked on the extra point for the 7-3 advantage. The Marietta drive was aided by two 15-yard penalties (roughing the punter & pass interference) by the Yellow Jackets.

B-W regained the lead (10-7) when Lohr scored the go ahead touchdown on a nine yard run and Mohler add his first career extra point with 14:00 minutes remaining in the game. Lohr accounted for all 44 yards on the Yellow Jacket drive.

B-W extended its lead with 6:59 left as Harasyn gathered his second turnover of the game on an interception off the tipped pass from junior safety Tom Goebel (Parma/Padua Franciscan) and took it 48 yards to paydirt. Mohler tacked on the extra point to make the lead 17-7. Harasyn has accounted for all of the Yellow Jacket defensive touchdowns this season as he already returned a 68-yard fumble against Wooster in the season-opener.

In addition to the five turnovers, B-W tallied six sacks as senior defensive end Derron Hamilton (Euclid) accounted for three and half sacks. Hamilton has had seven sacks in the last two games.

courtesy of Baldwin-Wallace

In a battle waged primarily on the ground, with the teams combining for 410 rushing yards, two fourth quarter rushing touchdowns by Joe Glendening allowed No. 21-ranked Hillsdale College to escape with a 35-26 victory over Lake Erie College on Homecoming Day in Painesville.

The Storm (1-3, 0-3 GLIAC) led 26-21 heading into the fourth quarter but Glendening, who ran for 139 yards on 36 carries and scored four times on the ground and once receiving, found the endzone on runs of 25 yards and thre yards in the final nine minutes to lift the Chargers (3-1, 3-0 GLIAC).

Lake Erie took the opening kickoff and marched 65 yards on eight plays. Kameron Alexander (Akron Buchtel) was the hero of the drive with runs of 25 and 18 yards and the two-yard score to finish the series. Alexander finished with 102 yards on 12 carries for his second career 100-yard game.

Hillsdale answered right back with a 13-play, 80 yard scoring drive of their own with Glendening scoring from 10 yards out.

Both teams quickly fizzled on their next drive, but Lake Erie marched down the field for a sustained nine-play, 73-yard drive with the score coming on a 10-yard option pitch by Sean Bedevelsaky (Brunswick) to senior wing David Romeo (Eastlake North). The extra point attempt was blocked and Lake Erie had a six-point edge at 13-7.

The teams continued their marches down the field as Hillsdale answered right back when Anthony Mifsud found Glendening on third down for a one-yard TD pass. On their next drive, the Storm got a 33-yard field goal by junior Sam Marcotte (Chardon) to regain the lead, 16-14. In the final two minutes of the first half, Bedvelsky was again able to lead Lake Erie into field goal range and Marcotte converted a 32-yard attempt on the half’s final play to give the Green and White a five point edge at intermission (19-14).

Glendending plunged in from a yard out to cap a 16-play, 73-yard drive by the Chargers to open the second half. The drive took 8:12 off the clock and put Hillsdale up 21-19.

But Lake Erie responded quickly, covering 68 yards in five plays and just over two minutes. Bedevelsky broke free for a 41-yard scamper on the first play of the drive and then capped the series with a 14-yard score – his third straight game with a rushing touchdown – to put LEC back in front 26-21.

After Hillsdale drove to the eight and Colin McGreevy’s field goal was no good, the Storm had a chance to put some distance between the two teams. But Lake Erie went three-and-out and the Chargers subsequently drove 44 yards in four plays, with Glendening covering the final 25 yards for the lead.

Another three-and-out by the Storm was followed by a 9-play, 77-yard drive by the Chargers that made it 35-26 with 4:33 to play.

Lake Erie rushed for 213 yards on 37 attempts, while the Chargers took to the ground 44 times for 197 yards. It was the first time this season the LEC ground game got over the 200 yard mark. In addition to Alexander’s 102 yards, Bedevelsky ran 15 times for 69 yards and a TD from the quarterback position.

Bedevelsky was an efficient 17 of 21 through the air for 183 yards. His top target was senior Brandon James (Mentor) with seven receptions for 87 yards. A 28-yard reception on the game’s final play put James, the LEC all-time leader in receiving yards, over the 2,000 yard mark for his career with 2,012.

On the defensive side of the ball, senior linebackers Cameron Bryant (Admiral King) and Kevin Chapman each made three solo and six assisted stops. Overall, 12 Lake Erie defenders registered at least three tackles.

The Storm forced Hillsdale into 16 third-down attempts, but the Chargers consistently kept drives alive, converting on 10 occasions.

Mifsud was 24-of-33 throwing the ball for 251 yards and a touchdown. The Chargers outgained the Storm overall, 448-396, and held the ball for 36:05, compared to just 23:55 for LEC.

The Storm is on the road next weekend, with a night game at Ferris State University. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. in Big Rapids, Mich. with live coverage of the game on ESPN 970 WFU N and online at LakeErieStorm.com.

courtesty of Lake Erie College

Transferring isn’t always easy.

For former Lorain County Golden Helmet Award winner Ryan O’Rourke, he made it look just that.

After playing in six games as a true freshman at Slippery Rock (Division II) last season, he transferred to Baldwin-Wallace (D-III) and has excelled beyond expectations through nine games this year.

On the season, the Yellow Jackets boast a 7-2 record, after going 3-7 last season. O’Rourke, an Avon graduate, has started all nine games and completed 102 of 187 passes for 1,352 yards, including 15 touchdowns. His quarterback efficiency is 132.12.

"I knew I had to prove myself, coming down from D-II to D-III," O’Rourke said. "I had a lot of preparation coming into the season. I just let that do the talking. We’ve had a good season so far, but we’ve let two slip away."

Despite playing six games, including two starts last year at Slippery Rock, O’Rourke says he feels more comfortable at B-W.

"Obviously, the offenses are different," said O’Rourke, who completed 23 of 51 passes for 324 yards, including two TDs at Slippery Rock. "It’s a lot more fun and suitable here for me. Nothing against Slippery Rock or anything, but I love my teammates here and I can’t wait to keep playing with these guys two more years."

The Yellow Jackets have only two losses this season. Beside a 41-21 loss to Ohio Northern four weeks ago, B-W’s only other loss came against the nation’s second-ranked team in Division III Mount Union, 41-13 last Saturday. B-W gave it all it could against the Purple Raiders, even being tied 13-13 after one quarter and being down just 20-13 at halftime, but Mount Union scored 28 unanswered points to put the game and Ohio Athletic Conference title away.

"We knew we had a good chance and felt we could compete against them," O’Rourke said. "The intensity was there in the first half, but we let it slip in the second. They had some long drives and we had some turnovers. That’s not a good mix."

O’Rourke completed 12 of 22 passes for 166 yards with a TD but was picked off three times.

"They chose to tighten up a little and send more pressure," O’Rourke said. "I knew I was going to take some shots, but I just had to stand in there and deliver some throws.

"It’s frustrating because we were in it really until early in the fourth quarter. We’re a young offense. We let some mistakes get the better of us. We can’t let that happen."

O’Rourke is pleased with his first season at B-W and looks forward to playing two more years.

Earlier this season, O’Rourke was chosen the Ohio Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Week as he shined in his very first game with B-W. He completed 9 of 13 passes for 154 yards and threw three touchdowns in a 38-14 win over Wooster. He threw TD passes of 40-, 59-, and 19-yards.

He then topped that performance on Oct. 23 against Wilmington College when he threw four touchdown passes in a 38-0 win over the Quakers. He completed 19 of 26 passes for 259 yards, including the four scores.

O’Rourke broke almost every passing record at Avon and set Lorain County records for touchdowns in a season and a career, until this year when Elyria Catholic’s Danny Reaser broke it. His senior season, he threw for 2,374 yards and 33 touchdowns and led Avon to a 12-1 season, which included two playoff wins before losing its only game to Sunbury Big Walnut in the D-III regional final. He also received the Lorain County Golden Helmet Award, All-Ohio First Team and All-District Offensive Player of the Year, among other accolades.

Baldwin-Wallace will improve last year’s win total by five games if they defeat John Carroll at Don Shula Stadium on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.

swalker@MorningJournal.com