Posted October 28 2001, 11:36 am
Posted by: Ryan Maurer
HIRAM, Ohio — It was cold. The snow flurries were swirling in the air. The winds were whipping. And the field was a muddy pit in which no player could gain traction.
No matter. The Wittenberg Tigers continued their steady march toward a fifth consecutive North Coast Athletic Conference championship with a 39-0 victory before a sparse gathering at Hiram College’s Henry Field on Saturday. The victory, which improved Wittenberg to 8-1 overall and 6-0 in the NCAC while dropping Hiram to 3-4 overall and 1-4 in the NCAC, earned the Tigers at least a share of that title.
All that stands between Wittenberg and another illustrious chapter in its gridiron lore is a confrontation next Saturday at Earlham College at 1 p.m. A win would give Wittenberg its 29th consecutive NCAC victory, a fifth straight NCAC title and a fourth straight outright conference crown, all of which are unprecendented in either school or league history. In addition, the Tiger seniors would become the first group of football players in school or league history to never lose a conference game in its four years.
Against Hiram, the visiting Tigers were clearly the better team from the outset, and by day’s end the NCAA Division III record books would beckon. Junior tailback Daniel Grove (Uhrichsville, Ohio/Claymont) continued his hot streak with a career-high four touchdowns and 115 yards rushing, including three running scores in the first half alone. He added a touchdown on a 39-yard pass play from junior quarterback Greg Cornett (Franklin, Ohio/Franklin) in the third quarter. The four TDs gave Grove an NCAC-best 18 on the season and also gave him 10 in the last three weeks.
Senior wide receiver Michael Aljancic (Louisville, Ohio/Louisville) caught three passes for 25 yards to inch him closer to several school receiving records. But his biggest contribution to Saturday’s victory came on a reverse as he took a handoff from Grove, got a huge block from Cornett and scampered 20 yards for a first-quarter touchdown.
Freshman tailback Alex Smith (Blue Bell, Pa./Germantown Academy) mopped up in the fourth quarter, picking up 60 yards on eight carries and scored the game’s final touchdown. He also scored the two-point conversion.
Defensively, it was a record-setting game for the Tigers. Hiram managed to complete just on pass for a six-yard loss. Wittenberg had held six opponents over the years to zero yards passing, but it had never held one with negative yardage in that category. The negative six yards passing tied an NCAA Division III record set by Central (Iowa) against Simpson in 1985.
Leading the charge was senior linebacker Nic Black (Piqua, Ohio/Piqua), whose filthy jersey was seen everywhere as he recorded eight tackles. Junior linebacker Ryan Gresham (Columbus, Ohio/Eastmoor) had 5.5 tackles and senior defensive tackle Mike Houck (Cincinnati, Ohio/Colerain) chipped in with six tackles.