Box Score

Fulton, Mo., Sept. 22, 2007 – The Northwestern College football team won the battle of preseason No. 1's Saturday afternoon, defeating Westminster College (Mo.) 28-14. The Eagles had been pre-ranked No. 1 in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) North Division, while Westminster was picked first in the South Division.

Northwestern came at Westminster with probably their most balanced offensive attack this season, racking up 159 yards on the ground and 242 yards in the air to combine for a total 401 yards – the Eagles' highest game-total so far in 2007. Westminster countered with 380 yards of total offense, but it was the Blue Jays' costly turnovers combined with NWC's timely scoring that give the Eagles their first road victory this year.

It was Northwestern who struck first, courtesy of an emerging Jake Rusinkovich (San Clemente, Calif./San Clement High School) (San Clemente, Calif./San Clemente). The sophomore, who saw more playing time due to Kyle Thomford's injury from the Rockford game, caught a 29-yard pass from Zack Tarter (Crystal Falls, Mich./Forest Park) with 5:32 to play in the first quarter to put the Eagles up 7-0. Northwestern capitalized on a Blue Jays' fumble on the ensuing drive, as Josh Lundeen (Princeton, MN/Faith Christian High School) (Princeton, Minn./Faith Christian) was on the receiving end of a 65-yard halfback pass from Steven Boggess (Ginnell, IA/Grinnell High School) (Grinnell, Iowa/Grinnell) to give NWC a 14-0 lead.

Chris Baker helped Westminster put points on the board for the first time mid-way through the second quarter, running 23 yards for six points, followed by a completed PAT.

It wasn't long before the Eagles responded, as Aaron Pennington (Inver Grove Heights, MN/Simley High School) (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley) capped off a seven-play, 49-yard drive with a nine-yard touchdown run to give NWC a 21-7 halftime lead.

The third quarter proved to be a defensive battle, as neither team saw the end zone, leaving the nail-biting excitement to the fourth and final period. Having missed a 29-yard field goal in their previous possession, Westminster upped their score to 14 with a 17-yard pass from Daniel Eidson to Sean Johnson with 8:37 to play.

Northwestern followed with one of their best drives of the year, highlighted by a Boggess touchdown run on fourth down and three from 14 yards out to ultimately give the Eagles a 28-14 final advantage. NWC's drive took 5:51 off the clock, and included 13 plays for 76 yards.

Westminster did have one more possession, but it was ended on their fourth play of the drive after a Reid Jilek (Eden Prairie, MN/Eden Prairie High School) (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie) interception.

Several Eagles had exceptional days, highlighted by Boggess's 125 yards on 26 carries with a touchdown – his sixth of the year. Tarter was 15-for-22 with 177 yards and a TD, while Lundeen led the receiving corps with three catches for 84 yards and a score.

Defensively, Andrew Magaard (Ogilvie, Minn./Ogilvie High School) (Ogilvie, Minn./Ogilvie) continued to tally his season's tackles total with 11 on Saturday, while Jake Stroud (Basehor, KN/Hillcrest Academy) (Basehor, Kan./Hillcrest Academy) recorded ten. Mike Polley (Plymouth, MN/Wayzata High School) (Plymouth, Minn./Wayzata) had yet another interception, making that four in three consecutive games. Polley and Jilek's INTs were two of the team's four, with the other two courtesey of Taylor Swanson (Monticello, Minn./Monticello High School) (Monticello, Minn./Monticello) and Ty Crabtree (Fergus Falls, MN/Hillcrest Academy) (Fergus Falls, Minn./Hillcrest Academy). NWC also had four sacks and a forced fumble to go with their interceptions.

Upon returning home from the 12-hour ride, the team will go straight to the drawing board as North Division rival Minnesota-Morris awaits. Northwestern, who lost their only UMAC contest to the Cougars in 2006, will play in Morris's new stadium next Saturday in a 1 p.m. showdown.

Game Notes
Saturday's game was the second time Jilek was involved in a game-determining play. In last week's contest versus Rockford, the junior safety batted away a fourth-and-six pass to give Northwestern their first conference win.