BLOOMINGTON, Ill. -- The Augustana Vikings football team will be back on the road on Saturday, October 28 for the first of two straight away from home when they take on the Illinois Wesleyan Titans.

The Vikings, who are receiving votes in both the latest D3football.com and AFCA polls, are riding a four-game winning streak and sit at 6-1 on the season and 5-1 in CCIW play. The team is coming off a 42-28 home win over North Park this past weekend, jumping out to a quick lead with touchdowns on its first two possessions. On the second play of the game, a 68-yard rush from Tyler Rivelli set up an eventual touchdown from Mike DiGioia for the game's first score. After the defense forced a North Park punt, the Vikings quickly made it a 14-0 game on the ensuing drive, capping off a nine-play, 80-yard march down the field with another DiGioia touchdown scamper from 14 yards out. Augustana led 14-0 after 15 minutes of action.

After 10 minutes of scoreless play to begin the second quarter, the visitors cut the margin in half with their first touchdown of the game. The two teams traded defensive stops before Augustana notched its third score of the half with just 15 seconds remaining. Sitting with a first down at the North Park 4-yard line, Cole Bhardwaj connected with Bobby Inserra in the back corner of the end zone to bring the score to 21-7 heading into intermission.

On the second play of the second half, Augie added onto its lead, this time scoring from the defensive side of the ball on a 38-yard interception return for a touchdown from Darren Oregon. North Park got back within two scores later in the period, posting the game's longest drive of nearly eight minutes that resulted in their second trip to the end zone. The Vikings extended their differential back out to 21 before the end of the third on a short pass to Breyden Smith, who took it the distance from the 36 yards out. Augie continued to keep its distance, adding one final touchdown through the air with 4:50 remaining. Fighting through a pass interference, Inserra made an acrobatic catch near his feet to secure his second score of the game from 27 yards out. North Park notched one final touchdown two minutes later, but an onside kick attempt fell into the hands of Inserra to all but ice the game.

Offensively, Bhardwaj wrapped up his afternoon with 203 yards on 14 completions, while Rivelli was the game's top rusher with 102 yards on the ground. Three different Vikings caught at least three passes, with Smith tallying 62 yards and Jordan Vesey and Inserra both racking up 61. On defense, Rukkus Hunkins secured a team-high 12 tackles, followed by Ronde Worrels with eight. Cole Romano recorded two sacks for a loss of 22 yards.

Illinois Wesleyan enters Saturday with a 2-5 overall record and 2-4 mark in the CCIW. The Titans recently snapped a two-game skid this past Saturday, defeating Carthage on the road by a score of 34-7. A pair of receiving touchdowns from Myles Kee in the opening quarter pushed Illinois Wesleyan out in front by two touchdowns before the team added another score in the second to bring their lead to 21-0 at half. The Titans out-gained the Firebirds by nearly 200 yards of total offense on their way to the 27-point win. Illinois Wesleyan is seeking its first win on its home field this season.

Augustana is 38-48-1 all-time against Illinois Wesleyan, but has won the last two meetings in the series. The Vikings squeaked out a 24-21 comeback win last season in Rock Island to make it two straight wins over the Titans. In 2021, Augie notched its first win in Bloomington since 2014 with a 38-14 road victory.

Start time on Saturday is scheduled for 1 p.m. Live coverage can be found here.