Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Turnovers
Time of Poss.
The No. 3 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater football team scored 17 unanswered points Saturday afternoon to defeat Concordia-Moorhead 20-10 in a non-conference affair at Jake Christiansen Stadium in Moorhead, Minn.
The Warhawks (2-0 overall) finished with 267 yards passing offensively and held the Cobbers to 62 yards rushing at a 1.8 yards-per-carry clip on the defensive side. UW-Whitewater also forced four turnovers, including two interceptions and two fumbles.
Junior quarterback Zach Oles (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) finished 19-of-29 passing for 248 yards and one touchdown and rushed for a team-high 56 yards on 14 carries with one score. Senior running back Jarrod Ware (Bradley, Ill./Bradley-Bourbonnais)rushed for 49 yards.
Junior wide receiver JT Parish (Cambridge, Wis./Cambridge) collected four receptions for 99 yards and one touchdown, and junior wide receiver Derek Kumerow (Bartlett, Ill./South Elgin) registered six catches for 68 yards.
Senior linebacker Matt Anderson (Rockford, Ill./Lutheran) totaled a team-high nine tackles, and senior defensive back Jacob Frey (Milwaukee, Wis./Wisconsin Lutheran HS) recorded eight stops.
Junior kicker Wojciech Gasienica (Norridge, Ill./Ridgewood) opened scoring for the Warhawks with a 23-yard field goal midway through the first quarter after an interception by senior defensive back Garrett Purdy (Naperville, Ill./Central) set up UW-W near midfield.
The Cobbers (0-2) tallied the next 10 points, finding the end zone five minutes into the second quarter and kicking a field goal with 2:38 left in the period for a 10-3 advantage.
UW-Whitewater closed the first half strong in just two plays. After a 16-yard completion to Kumerow, Oles hit Parish for a 54-yard touchdown with 1:53 on the clock to tie the game at 10-10.
Gasienica knocked through his second field goal of the game from 33 yards out five minutes into the third quarter to complete an 11-play, 58-yard drive that started the second half.
Early in the fourth quarter, Concordia drove deep into Warhawk territory, but junior defensive back Mark McGrath (Lisle, Ill./Lisle) picked off Blake Kragnes in the end zone for a touchback with 11:52 to play in the contest.
On the ensuing drive, UW-Whitewater drove 80 yards on 14 plays, converting two third downs and a fourth down late in the drive. On second-and-10 from the Cobbers' 14-yard line, Oles took a quarterback draw untouched into the end zone for a 20-10 lead with 4:59 to go.
The two teams exchanged punts, but the Warhawks forced and recovered a fumble on the punt return with 1:54 remaining to seal the win.
UW-Whitewater closes the non-conference regular season next Saturday, Sept. 21, at St. Xavier. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. in Chicago, Ill.