Jacket Football succumbs to big plays at Hanover

—Hanover, Ind.—On a windy October Saturday, the DC Yellow Jackets fell at Hanover College, 28-7 to fall to 0-5 overall and 0-2 in the HCAC.

John Bozzo registered an impressive defensive effort in the Defiance loss, registering 11 tackles and one tackle-for-loss from his defensive end position. David Lamb and Josh Staggs each had sacks for DC, while quarterback Nate Fitton led the offense with 207 total yards on 21-of-36 passing with one touchdown and 37 yards on 18 rushes. Darin Lomason ran for 58 yards on 18 carries.

Defiance found their rhythm late in the contest, putting together a 12-play, 66-yard scoring drive, culminating in a 16-yard touchdown pass from Fitton to Jason Brown, who caught eight passes for 59 yards and the lone Jacket score. Aaron Schmidt added 48 yards on four receptions, while Lomason caught five passes for 21 yards.

The Panthers took the first lead of the game when Adam Stevenson broke lose on a 80-yard touchdown run at the 13:39 mark of the second quarter. Fellow Panther Corey Fogle later scored on a 48-yard burst early in the third quarter. HC quarterback Greg Gogel found Mike Russell for a seven-yard touchdown pass late in third quarter, which was followed by another Fogle touchdown run, this time from 69-yards out with seven minutes remaining in the game.

The Jacket defense was impressive for a majority of the game, holding the vaunted Panther passing attack to just 45 yards on 7-of-14 Gogel passing. Big plays were the story as, five of the Panthers’ 69 offensive plays, two of which were scores, accounted for 226 of the 374 total yards for Hanover.

The Jackets were flagged for 11 penalties, costing them 125 yards of real-estate, while the Panthers were penalized five times for just 30 yards. In the cool, blustery conditions, there were seven fumbles, three by DC (lost one), while the Panthers lost two after putting the ball on the grass four times.

Blake Stambaugh, again, punted well, averaging 38.0 yards on 12 punts with a long of 60 coming in the fourth quarter. Kicker Keith Wilson missed on a 38-yard attempt as the first half ended, but later added a PAT after the Brown touchdown.

The Jackets (0-5, 0-2 HCAC) will face a tough opponent when they host the undefeated, conference-leading Mt. St. Joseph Lions (6-0, 3-0 HCAC) next Saturday. Kick-off is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at Justin F. Coressel Stadium.