It was the Wolverines who had the gaudy defensive statistics but the Crusaders who turned in a stonewalling performance.
And it was a battle that was supposed to be a showdown but turned into a beatdown because UMHB unequivocally dominated Wesley lock, stock and barrel.
The fourth-ranked Crusaders controlled the line of scrimmage, forced six turnovers and ran the No. 10 Wolverines off the field with a 27-point first-half barrage en route to a 46-14 victory Saturday afternoon at Tiger Field.
The second-round playoff victory propelled UMHB (11-1) into the NCAA Division III quarterfinals for the third straight season and fourth time in five years. The Crusaders will host No. 18 Washington & Jefferson (Pa.) - a 35-20 winner at No. 3 Millsaps (Miss.) - next Saturday at noon.
It will be the third playoff meeting in five years between the Presidents (11-1) and the Crusaders, who hold a 2-0 edge in the series.
“I think it’s an advantage (to play a team we’ve faced before) next week, but it’s an advantage for them, too,” UMHB coach Pete Fredenburg said. “It’s just awesome that we’re sitting in a position where we can host a quarterfinal.
“And if we take care of that, there’s a chance we might host the next one. That’s awesome.”
It was all set up by a thorough performance against the Wolverines (9-2).
Wesley - which came in averaging 420 yards and 37 points per game while converting on third down more than 50 percent of the time - managed to gain only 225 yards, scored just one offensive touchdown and went an anemic 1-for-8 on third down.
On the other side of the ball, a Wolverines defense that was yielding just 249 yards and 11 points was steamrolled for 420 yards - 302 on the ground.
“Up front, Mary Hardin-Baylor did a phenomenal job,” said Wesley coach Mike Drass, whose team was eliminated by UMHB for the second straight year. “That was the key to the game, not our offense struggling a little bit, not our turnovers. They just did a better job than us today.”
It was all but over by halftime and sealed for good by the end of the third quarter.
The Crusaders took advantage of a pair of first-quarter Wesley fumbles - one of which senior linebacker Eric Henri returned 82 yards for his first of his two touchdowns - to build a 17-0 lead, then tacked on 10 second-quarter points to go up 27-0 by intermission.
The Wolverines rushed for just 39 first-half yards and 19 for the game, and they committed three of their six turnovers in the opening two quarters.
“Nobody runs the ball on these guys,” Drass said. “Our plan coming in was to throw the ball, and we didn’t do a good job of pass protecting or securing the football. And frankly today, I don’t think Mary Hardin-Baylor needed us to turn the ball over.”
Wesley’s lone spark was a successful onside kick to start the third quarter followed quickly by Shane McSweeny’s 15-yard touchdown pass to Blair Newman.
The Wolverines still had some momentum after UMHB missed a field goal and fumbled the ball to kill two drives later in the quarter, but that was as good as it got for Wesley.
Brett Parker picked off a McSweeny pass and ran it back to the Wolverines’ 21-yard line. Two plays later, Josh Saenz threaded a 19-yard bullet between two defenders to tight end Marcos Garcia for a 33-7 lead with 2:39 left in the third.
“That onside kick caught us by total surprise,” Fredenburg said. “But our next scoring drive was huge because they had gotten a little momentum, then our guys take it down, score and take a little starch out of it.”
Wesley’s only other points came midway through the fourth on a 98-yard kickoff return by speedy receiver Larry Beavers, who was limited to only three catches for 40 yards.
McSweeny and reserve quarterback Jason Schatz were harassed all day and sacked seven times - 3˝ by end Mark Manning and 2˝ by tackle Mark Balderas.
Saenz’s balanced production of 100 yards rushing and 116 passing paced the Crusaders’ attack, which converted on nine of 16 third-down attempts and had possession of the ball for more than 36 minutes.
“By far, they were the best offensive line we saw all season,” Wesley linebacker Sean Matthews said. “I think I could line up in that backfield and run for 1,500 yards the way they work.”
Said UMHB sophomore center Dustin Davis: “We were challenged to be more physical and set the tone for our team. They had some big guys but as a line, we played well together today. The five of us were hitting on all cylinders.”
Alan Munoz kicked field goals of 21, 45, 49, and 46 yards. Brian Scott scored on a 12-yard end-around run, and Ervin Johnson caught a 14-yard TD pass from Saenz.
“I’m sure they had watched a lot of film of the option and were worried about defending it, and that opens up a lot of things for the receivers,” Saenz said. “Their defense was moving up, then scooting back like they really weren’t sure whether we were going to run or pass. It looked like they were a little flustered.”
NOTES: If UMHB defeats Washington & Jefferson, the Crusaders would host Wisconsin-Whitewater or Wartburg (Iowa) in a national semifinal the following week. . . . Henri, who also had a 44-yard fumble return for a TD in the fourth quarter, set a UMHB record with his 82-yarder.
edrennan@temple-telegram.com
