by Alliance, OH- On alumni weekend, the Purple Raider faithful were given dominant football in the form of a 78-19 victory over Wilmington. This win keeps Mount Union undefeated in the series as all 26 contests have bled purple by the end.
After a slow start against Otterbein last week, the Purple Raider offense wasted no time scoring as Tyler Echeverry collected a short screen pass from Noah Beaudrie, taking the rock 45 yards for a touchdown. The Quakers turned around and returned the ball 73 yards on the ensuing kick but settled for a Connor Bucksath 40-yard field goal. A symmetrical drive followed for Mount Union as the offense rotated between passing to Nick Turner and running with Echeverry, finishing with the running back scoring for the second time. The offensive explosion continued with Echeverry completing his hat-trick of touchdowns and Turner earning a 16-yard touchdown reception within two minutes.
“They took ownership of it [the slow start] and they wanted to get off to a fast start.” Mount Union Head Coach Geoff Dart remarked after the game. “They had a great week of practice, and they did that [fast offensive start]”
With seven minutes remaining in the opening frame, the Purple Raiders led 28-3. The defense for Mount Union forced Wilmington to punt. Behind this defense is senior captain Rossy Moore. With his 2.5 tackles for loss, Moore now sits fourth all-time in the category at UMU for a career. The no-huddle tempo continued on offense for the Purple Raiders as Beaudrie and Echeverry alternated with passes and runs respectively on the following drive. With Mount Union in the red zone, the Purple Raiders led the Quakers 28-3.
Echeverry would score his fourth and final touchdown on the second play of the new frame. The running back would be subbed out shortly after with a final stat line of 8 carries, 97 yards, and 3 touchdowns on the ground while catching 2 passes for 46 yards and 1 touchdown. Wilmington responded by scoring their first touchdown against UMU since 2019 as Isaac Ross found Joseph Spann for the three-yard score. The score would remain 35-9 as the extra point attempt was missed. On the ensuing drive, Beaudrie would emulate Echeverry by rushing for an eight-yard touchdown. Bucksath would respond with his second field goal of the afternoon, cutting UMU’s lead to 42-12. In the final five minutes of the second quarter, Darnell Williams and Tyrell Sanders would score on a run and reception respectively. At the half, the Purple Raiders led 56-12.
After a couple of penalties backed Wilmington up to begin the second half, a safety opened UMU’s scoring account for the third quarter. Williams scored his second touchdown of the day on the following drive, making Mount Union’s advantage 65-12. Caleb Gardner would score the Quakers’ second touchdown of the afternoon with 8:19 left in the third. Shaun Thomas would score the Purple Raiders’ final touchdown of the game from 20 yards out. Ivan Maric would make two field goals in the final 20 minutes to seal Mount Union’s 78-19 victory.
Mount Union posted an all-time great performance today. In addition to Moore moving up the TFL leaderboard, Beaudrie set the record for most completions in a game without an incompletion in school history. The 78 points scored is good enough to place it second all-time for most points in a game scored by the Purple Raiders. Freshman Kayden Minner ran for a game-high 102 yards. This was his first career 100-yard game. This win now extends Mount Union’s regular season winning streak to 69 games, dating back to November 2016.
The 19 points scored by Wilmington today are the most points the Quakers have ever put up against Mount Union. The prior record was 9 points back on October 14, 2006. For the first time since 2019, Wilmington scored a touchdown against Mount Union. The Quakers return home next Saturday to take on Otterbein. The Purple Raiders welcome Heidelberg to Kehres Stadium for another OAC clash at 1:30 PM next week.
Wilmington Key Players:
Isaac Ross: 15/29, 129 Yards, 1 TD
Caleb Gardner: 10 Carries, 55 Yards, 1 TD
Mount Union Key Players:
Tyler Echeverry: 8 Carries, 97 Yards, 3 TD’s + 2 Catches, 46 Yards, 1 TD
Rossy Moore: 7 Solo Tackes, 3 Assisted Tackles, 10 Total Tackles, 2.5 TFL’s, 0.5 Sacks
Noah Beaudrie: 15/15, 248 Yards, 3 TD’s + 5 Carries, 29 Yards, 1 TD
Player of the Game: Noah Beaudrie
