CHAMPIONS!
Panthers top Huntingdon for SLIAC championship
Nov. 15, 2008

Champions! LaGrange College added another chapter to the remarkable 2008 season with a 27-17 win over Huntingdon College on Saturday before over 3,600 fans at Callaway Stadium. The victory gives the Panthers the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship in their first year as a member.

The Panthers finished a perfect 7-0 in conference play and 9-1 overall. They now wait on a possible NCAA playoff berth. The NCAA Division III playoff field will be announced Sunday. It was their first win over Huntingdon (8-2, 6-1 SLIAC) after being shut out the first two meetings.

LaGrange rolled up 415 yards of total offense in the game. The Panthers ran for 239 yards against the Hawks, who came into the game allowing an SLIAC best 87.4 yards per game on the ground.

Leading the running attack was junior Mario Wallace. Wallace ran for a game-high 118 yards on 13 carries and a touchdown. He left the game with an injury after his first run of the second half. Wallace became the first Panther to go over 1,000 yards in a season. He now has 1,008 yards. Junior Colt Shope stepped in and ran for 77 yards and a touchdown.

The LaGrange defense limited the SLIAC's highest scoring offense to just 10 points, as the Hawks got a touchdown off a blocked punt. The Hawks came into the game averaging 44.4 points per game and 460 yards of total offense. The Panthers limited them to 221 yards of total offense.

The Panthers drove the length of the field on their first possession. They drove 99 yards in just nine plays to go up 7-0. Drew Carter threw 21 yards to Stephen Tuck on a third-and-8 from the two to get the Panthers going. Wallace ripped off runs of 22 and 31 yards to move the ball down to the Hawks' 18-yard line. He finished the drive two plays later with a 4-yard run.

Huntingdon came back to take a 10-7 lead by halftime. The Hawks tied the game when Corneilus Jenkins blocked a Josh Stripling punt and Xavier Singleton returned the ball nine yards for the touchdown. Cody Stepko put the Hawks ahead with a 30-yard field goal with 35 seconds left in the half.

The Panthers took control of the game in the third quarter. They controlled the ball for over 10 minutes in the quarter, held the Hawks to 10 yards of total offense and scored twice to take a 21-10 lead.

Cedric Talley set up the first score with a 47-yard return of the second half kickoff to the Huntingdon 34-yard line. Carter hit tight end Tripp Duke for 17 yards down to the 5-yard line. Two plays later he found Nick Langley in the end zone for the touchdown and a 14-10 lead. It was Langley's seventh touchdown catch of the season.

The defense set up the next touchdown for the Panthers. George Okpani forced Jamal Gardner to fumble with the Panthers taking over at the Hawks' 17-yard line. Two plays later, Shope ran it in from the 13 to open up a 21-10 lead going to the fourth quarter.

The Panthers put the game out of reach with their first possession of the fourth quarter. They put together a 10-play 64-yard drive to go up 27-10. Carter passed for all but one of the yards on the drive. The biggest play was a 27-yard completion to Eric Miller on a third down play to the Hawks' 25. He came back with a 16-yard completion to Shope to the 3-yard line and finished the drive with a 4-yard toss to Miller for the touchdown.

Huntingdon came back with its only drive of the game. The Hawks went 58 yards in just five plays to make it 27-17. Gardner scored from the 1-yard line to complete the drive with 7:40 left in the game.

The Panther defense shut down the Hawks the rest of the way. They stopped the next two drives on downs after the touchdown. Tim Hill's interception ended the Hawks' final possession of the game.

Richard Okpani led the defense with 6.5 total tackles. Jeremy Pickens had six solo tackles. Justin Pair also had an interception.

Carter finished the game 16-for-31 for 183 yards and the two touchdowns. Stephen Tuck had a game-high five receptions for 63 yards.

Huntingdon's Justin Ridgeway came into the game as the most efficient passer in the SLIAC. He was 13-for-37 with two interceptions and only 119 yards.

Photo Gallery