ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – Illinois Wesleyan limited Augustana to 124 yards of total offense and five first downs Saturday to win 12-0 in the Vikings' 2020 season opener at Lindberg Stadium. It was the second game for the Titans, who improved to 1-1 on the year.
The only threat in a scoreless first quarter came when IWU drove 45 yards in 14 plays to the Augustana 18-yard line, but a botched snap on a 35-yard field goal attempt kept it 0-0.
The Titans took the lead on the first possession of the second quarter. Quarterback Sage Shindler hit Wesley Watson for a gain of 39 yards to the Viking 36 on the first play of the period. The drive stalled at the 22, but Andrew Stange converted a 39-yard field goal to put the visitors on top 3-0. Augustana had two opportunities to tie late in the quarter, but missed field goal attempts from 40 and 25 yards before IWU ran out the first half clock.
The second half started with seven consecutive three-and-outs. Finally, on their fourth and final possession of the third quarter, the Titans recorded a pair of first downs. The second came on a 31-yard Shindler-to-Lucas Segobiano pass that set IWU up at the Viking 10-yard line. The Augustana defense stiffened however, and Wesleyan settled for a 30-yard Stange field goal and a 6-0 lead after three quarters.
The teams swapped more three-and-outs early in the final period before a Fernando Chavez interception led to the game's only touchdown. Starting at the Viking 25 following Chavez's pick, Shindler hit Segobiano for gains of 3 and 22 yards, with the second reaching the end zone. A penalty extended Stange's point-after attempt to 35 yards and it was wide, leaving the score at 12-0.
Augustana's next drive was halted by a Zach Mitchell interception and the visitors used a 13-play, 86-yard drive to run out the clock.
Sophomore
Jacob Brooks (Yorkwood HS, Plano, Ill.), who broke off a 24-yard run on the Vikings' final drive, finished with 49 yards on 12 carries to pace a ground game that produced just 47 net yards on 30 attempts. Senior quarterback
Alek Jacobs (Rock Island HS, Rock Island, Ill.) was five of 15 through the air for 77 yards before leaving with an injury. Junior
Patrick Byrne (St. Patrick HS, Chicago, Ill.) caught two passes for 29 yards.
On defense, sophomore linebacker
Tim Swaney (Anderson HS, Cincinnati, Ohio) recorded 16 tackles, including eight solo stops and four behind the line of scrimmage. Senior safety
John Kappel (Wheeling HS, Wheeling, Ill.) had seven tackles and also returned three punts for 53 yards.
On Saturday, April 3, Augustana hosts Millikin at Lindberg Stadium with opening kickoff scheduled for 3:00 p.m.
