Mitchell Czerniak

The College of Wooster was within 10 points of No. 13 ranked Wabash College at halftime, but the Little Giants' Cody Buresh intercepted a pass and returned it 26 yards for a touchdown on the second snap of the second half and they went on to secure a 30-0 triumph Saturday afternoon during a North Coast Athletic Conference match-up in Crawfordsville, Ind.

It marked the first time Wooster (2-5, 1-3 NCAC) has been shutout in a conference game since Nov. 5, 2005, a stretch of 45 games.

The Fighting Scots had a few scoring opportunities, including moving into Wabash (6-1, 3-1 NCAC) territory three times during the first half. Down 10-0 in the second quarter, Wooster accumulated 53 yards on 10 plays before turning the ball over on downs when an 11-yard Richard Barnes' scramble fell just short on 4th-and-13.

On their next offensive possession, the Scots gained 61 yards to the Little Giants' 35 where they elected to punt it away and keep the margin at 10 heading into the break.

Wooster began the third quarter with the ball, however, an eight-yard sack was followed by Buresh reading a screen play as the defensive end tipped the throw, then collected it, and rumbled into the end zone for a 16-0 cushion.

Wabash continued to hold the momentum, as its defense followed the big interception with a three-and-out and the offense went 61 yards in 10 plays, capped by an Andy Walsh-to-Jon Laird 20-yard touchdown pass, and suddenly it was 23-0 midway through the third.

The Scots advanced as far as the Little Giants' 37 on the ensuing series, however, that was as close as they got to scoring the second half.

The difference in the game was Wabash's ability to grind out 295 rushing yards over 50 attempts. Tyler Holmes accounted for 189 yards himself on 25 carries, as the Little Giants outgained Wooster 414-195.

Individually, Barnes totaled 160 offensive yards, a team-high 21 on the ground and 139 through the air on 20-of-36 passing.

Other highlights for the Scots came from Mitchell Czerniak, who was credited with a game-high 14 tackles, Brandon James, who had an interception, and Girard Ogletree-Crawford, who contributed a fumble recovery.

Next Saturday, Wooster hosts DePauw University (1-6, 0-4 NCAC) in the first-ever conference meeting between the two teams.