The Wilmington College football team racked up 458 yards of offense, but couldn't slow down Capital's prolific option rushing attack Saturday. The Fightin' Quakers allowed 351 yards rushing, and lost to the Crusaders, 49-27, on Townsend Field in Williams Stadium in the Ohio Athletic Conference opener for both teams.
"It's a reality check," said Wilmington head coach Stacey Hairston. "Our guys got a little ahead of themselves. They thought, all off sudden since we won two weeks ago against Bluffton, that we were much further along than we really were. Today was a reality check, and it hurts."
For the first time since the first game of 2013 season, two receivers hauled in at least 100 yards each in the same game. Senior Justin Lee (Middletown, OH/Madison) and sophomore Brandon Mitchell (Pittsburgh, PA/Fox Chapel) pulled down 100 yards on seven and four catches, respectively. Each had a rushing score. Lee added an eight-yard rushing touchdown on a reverse.
Capital came out and scored on its first two possessions to take a 14-0 lead through one quarter.
Lee helped get Wilmington to within seven as he took a screen pass 26 yards on fourth down, breaking multiple tackles along the way, for the touchdown.
It looked as though the score swung momentum back in favor of the Fightin' Quakers as the WC defense forced Capital to punt on fourth down. However, a roughing the kicker penalty kept the drive along, and CU capped the drive with a score.
Once again, Lee helped pull Wilmington to within seven points – this time on an eight-yard run. But, once again, Capital answered. It drove 64 yards on four plays in 1:45 seconds at the end of the first half. The Crusaders scored 17 unanswered points to open the second half.
Although, Wilmington had a chance to get itself back into the game. After forcing a Capital punt to open the third quarter, the Fightin' Quakers drove down to the 14 yardline, but a holding penalty and back-to-back incompletions turned the ball over on downs.
"One of our problems offensively, when we get in scoring range – we have to score," said Hairston. "To come away with zero points let the air out of our balloon. There is another level we have to play at, and our inexperience and youth showed today."
Capital proceeded to capitalize on the aforementioned 17-point outburst.
Junior Chase Manica (Shelbyville, KY/Shelby County) scored on a 52-yard run, and Mitchell found the endzone on a 32-yard reception to round out the WC scoring.
Manica finished with 96 yards on 11 carries and one touchdown, while sophomore Luke Creditt (Wilmington, OH/Waynesville) added 54 yards on five carries. Creditt added 219 yards on 16-of-27 passing and two touchdowns.
Senior defensive back Tarrell Starckey (Richmond, VA/Highland Heights) led the team with 10 tackles, while junior David Henry (Wilmington, OH/Wilmington) finished with eight tackles, two sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss.
Senior Nick Williams (Cleveland, OH/Fairview) added seven tackles and a sack.
Wilmington (1-1 overall, 0-1 OAC) travels Otterbein 2 p.m. Saturday for its first road contest of the season.
