Titans Begin NCAA Postseason Run With Shutout

Dylan Hecker had three short touchdown runs and Brett Kasper threw for 336 yards and two scores, propelling UW-Oshkosh to a 48-0 victory over The College of St. Scholastica (Minn.) during the first round of the NCAA Division III Football Championship on Saturday (Nov. 21) at J. J. Keller Field at Titan Stadium.

UW-Oshkosh (10-1) advances to play Ohio Northern University (9-2) in the second round on Nov. 28. The game's location and start time will be announced on Sunday (Nov. 22).

UW-Oshkosh, ranked third in the NCAA Division III by D3football.com, created five turnovers and held a 560-225 advantage in total yards, including 197-32 rushing.

The College of St. Scholastica (9-2), whose 10.6 points allowed per game ranked ninth in the nation, was shut out for the first time in the program's eight-year history.

The Titans, making their second NCAA postseason appearance, also defeated the Saints, 55-10, in the opening round of the 2012 championship during which UW-Oshkosh advanced to semifinals.

Kasper completed 20 of 32 passes in just over three quarters of action, while Hecker registered 14 carries for a team-leading 66 yards before exiting in the third period.

Zach Kasuboski led the Titans with five receptions for 165 yards and two long touchdown catches.

Kasper threw a pass that was intercepted by The College of St. Scholastica's Xavier Rhodes at the Saints' 41-yard line on the first offensive play of the game. Aided by sacks on consecutive plays by Justin Watson and Kevin MacCudden, UW-Oshkosh forced a punt by the Saints on their opening possession.

Kasper connected on passes of 25, 23 and 22 yards on the Titans' second drive, which spanned seven plays and 92 yards and resulted in a 1-yard touchdown run by Hecker with 9:40 left in the first quarter.

The College of St. Scholastica answered with a 12-play, 36-yard drive on the ensuing possession, but Branden Lloyd sacked Saints quarterback Kyle Stepka for a 16-yard loss on fourth-and-5 from the Titans' 15-yard line.

After the team exchanged punts on the next two possessions, UW-Oshkosh mounted a 13-play drive that culminated in a 2-yard touchdown run by Hecker with 9:08 remaining in the second period.

UW-Oshkosh tacked on a 25-yard touchdown pass from wide receiver Sam Mentkowski to Cody Moon and a 32-yard field goal by Greg Rand for a 24-0 advantage at halftime. It was Mentkowski's first career touchdown pass as well as Moon's first career score.

Hecker scored his final touchdown of the game and 18th of the season on a 1-yard carry with 10:24 left in the third quarter.

Kasper hit Kasuboski for scoring strikes of 60 and 54 yards to increase the UW-Oshkosh lead to 45-0 with 14:53 remaining, and Rand capped the scoring with a 35-yard field goal at the 8:54 mark.

The Titans, who intercepted four passes and recovered one fumble, notched their fourth shutout of the season. UW-Oshkosh also blanked Finlandia University (Mich.) (86-0 on Sept. 12), North Park University (Ill.) (35-0 on Sept. 19) and UW-Eau Claire (38-0 on Nov. 14).

Lloyd paced UW-Oshkosh with eight tackles, including 4.5 for loss and 2.5 sacks.

CJ Blackburn, Steve Forner, Matt Gasper and Cole Yoder tallied four tackles apiece for the Titans, who registered 12 pass breakups. Marcus Senn contributed three tackles for loss, including two of the UW-Oshkosh's seven sacks.

Chris Bednarski, Johnny Eagan, Derrick Jennings Jr and Yoder all recorded interceptions, while Yoder also recovered a fumble.

The College of St. Scholastica used three quarterbacks. Stepka started and completed 9 of 20 passes for 90 yards, while Dakota Paulson was 3-for-11 for 57 yards and Mike Mensing was 2-for-10 for 23 yards.

Ben Buthe led the Saints' ground game with six carries for 30 yards, and Andrew Smith had a game-high seven catches for 58 yards.

The College of St. Scholastica's Kenneth Jinkins led all players with 12 tackles, while Michael Pender added 10 stops.

The College of St. Scholastica, which had its nine-game winning streak snapped, saw its record fall to 0-5 in five NCAA postseason appearances.

UW-Oshkosh and Ohio Northern University will be meeting for the first time. The Ohio Athletic Conference's Polar Bears won their opening-round game, 27-22, at Franklin College (Ind.).