The Raiders went on the road to face the Nebraska Wesleyan Prairie Wolves in Lincoln, Neb. this past Saturday for the team’s third conference matchup. NW walked away with an 8-0 victory over the host team after a grueling defensive battle in Abel Stadium.
Both teams went scoreless into the locker room at half time. The first half was highlighted by a blocked Nebraska Wesleyan field goal by freshman defensive end Cody Bauman in the first quarter.
On the second offensive drive of the second half, the Raiders took over the mid-field line after forcing the Prairie Wolves to punt. Sophomore quarter back Craig Bruinsma connected with Ben Green for a 50-yard touchdown pass to put NW ahead 6-0. A blocked extra-point attempt led to Green picking up the ball and running it in for a two-point conversion, which gave the Raiders an 8-0 lead with just over 10 minutes to play in the third quarter.
“I think that one of the key things for us as an offense to come away with the win was perseverance,” said Green. “We all know that we didn’t play up to our ability, but we kept on attacking them and scored the one touchdown that we needed to come out with the win.”
Neither team would score for the remainder of the contest as the NW defense allowed just four first downs and forced three turnovers in the second half. The Raider defense also set a new school record for least rushing yards allowed after holding the host team to -61 total yards on the ground.
“From our point of view, as an offense, the defense played lights-out all the way around, they caused four turnovers and they had a ton of sacks,” said Green. “They got the shutout, and from our point of view as an offense, that is the best that they can do and they did it.”
The entire defensive squad gave an impressive effort to earn the team’s first shut-out win since 2012. Highlighting last week’s game was junior defensive back Justin Wohlert, who recorded five tackles and two interceptions. This marks the third-straight week that Wohlert has recorded two picks in a single game, and this feat earned the junior the Hauff Mid-America/GPAC Football defensive player of the week. His six total picks through four games this season ranks Wohlert second in the NAIA in total number of interceptions.
With a bye this weekend, the Raiders will face Briar Cliff Chargers at home on October 11 at 11 a.m.
