Box Score

Oct. 18, 2008 - After sitting out last week's game due to a knee injury, North Central College quarterback Aaron Fanthorpe (Jr., Naperville, Ill./Naperville North) made his bid for a clean bill of health on Saturday, running for the game-winning touchdown in a 31-24 Homecoming victory over Carthage College at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium.

Though the Cardinals never trailed in the game, the contest was touch-and-go right down to the wire, as eighth-ranked North Central (6-0, 3-0 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin) attempted to rein in the top-rated passing attack among all NCAA Division III teams.

North Central pulled ahead early in the contest, as Dominic Sulo (Jr., Oak Forest, Ill./Mt. Carmel) personally financed a four-play, 65-yard drive, running for all the yards himself. He scored his fifth rushing touchdown of the season on a 32-yard run with 12:33 left in the first period, putting the hosts ahead, 7-0. Kyle Kniss (Sr., Lanark, Ill./Eastland-Pearl City), who started at quarterback before yielding to Fanthorpe, engineered a second scoring drive that ended with a 20-yard field goal by Andrew Barciszewski (Fr., Troy, Ill./Triad) with 8:13 left in the opening quarter.

Carthage (3-3, 1-2 CCIW), which came into the contest averaging nearly 400 passing yards per game, got on the board late in the first period, embarking on a 17-play, 74-yard possession which chewed up more than six minutes of the game clock. Kicker Tim Merchut booted a 28-yard field goal, the first of the season for the Red Men, to leave the score at 10-3 in North Central's favor.

The visitors took advantage of a Cardinal fumble on the ensuing possession and drove 64 yards in six plays to tie the game at 10-10. Receiver Chris Schulz, who took several snaps under center during the game, rolled out to his right and tossed a 30-yard TD pass to Nick Merchut, knotting the score with 11:11 left before halftime.

Fanthorpe wasted little time responding, firing a 41-yard strike to Steve Hlavac (So., Naperville, Ill./Naperville North) two minutes later to restore North Central's lead at 17-10. The Cardinals' defense stalled the next Carthage possession, leaving enough time for the hosts to strike again before heading into the locker room. Joe Sosinski (Sr., New Carlisle, Ind./New Prairie) did just that, hauling in a 33-yard TD pass from Fanthorpe with 2:18 remaining and the Cardinals held a 24-10 advantage at the half.

The Red Men put together a strong start to the second half of play, constructing a 13-play, 67-yard scoring drive on their first possession. Quarterback Evan Jones dove over the goal line from a yard away with 9:22 on the third-quarter clock, pulling Carthage to within a single touchdown at 24-17.

The Cardinals' lead held until just 4:18 remained in the game, when a huge Carthage defensive play helped the visitors even the score. Linebacker Nate Hughes intercepted a pass at the North Central six-yard line, and was stopped just three yards short of the end zone. Tailback Jake Smith needed one play to get the score and tie the contest, 24-24.

Opening their final possession of the day at their own 24, the Cardinals got 34 rushing yards from Sulo and 35 passing yards from Fanthorpe to Hlavac, leaving North Central with a first-down-and-goal at the seven-yard line. Fanthorpe tucked the ball away and scurried up the middle of the field to score untouched, putting the hosts back in front with just 1:49 left.

Jones completed five straight passes to move Carthage into the Cardinals' half of the field in a furious comeback attempt. From the North Central 28-yard line, he took three attempts at completing a pass into the end zone, but Tyler Venier (Sr., Dixon, Ill./Dixon), Derek Sulo (Jr., Oak Forest, Ill./Mt. Carmel), and Joe Schneiderbauer (So., Sterling, Ill./Sterling) each broke up plays as time ran out on the Red Men.

Fanthorpe finished the day 15 of 30 passing for 235 yards. Dominic Sulo ran 17 times for 127 yards, while Hlavac led the Cardinals' receiving corps with seven catches for 106 yards.

Matt Wenger (Jr., Davis, Ill./Dakota) posted a career-high 18 tackles, along with two tackles for loss and a quarterback sack, to lead the North Central defense, which held the Carthage passing game to 228 yards, nearly 170 yards below its season average. Derek Sulo tallied eight tackles and two pass breakups, while David Treglown (Sr., Naples, Fla./Barron Collier) contributed seven tackles and an interception. Schneiderbauer also picked off a pass.

Jones completed 27 of 45 passes for 198 yards, throwing eight times to Nick Merchut for 84 yards. He also completed eight passes to Smith for 37 yards. Danny Hernandez finished with a team-leading nine tackles for the Red Men.

North Central travels to face fourth-ranked Wheaton College (Ill.) on Saturday. Kickoff at McCully Field is scheduled for 7 p.m.