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       to the Nines

Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl - Division III National Championship

Raiders claim ninth national title with win over Warhawks

     SALEM, Va. - Number Eight was great and worth the wait, but this one was to the nines.

     The Mount Union football team won its second consecutive and ninth overall NCAA Division III national title here Saturday evening, beating Wisconsin-Whitewater 35-16 in the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl XXXIV.

     However, the Warhawks (14-1) made the Purple Raiders (15-0) go the whole nine yards to claim the title in a rematch of last year's national title game.

     The matchup of wire-to-wire No. 1 and No. 2-ranked teams was like a heavyweight fight until one big play.

     It was only fitting that it was the Raiders' No. 9 - Matt Kostelnik - that delivered that knockout blow.

     The Raiders had just taken a 21-13 lead in the third quarter and the defense had forced Whitewater into a punting situation.   Kostelnik rushed in up the middle, batted the ball off Nick Croak's foot down to the ground, and it was picked up by Matt Rees for a 34-yard return to the end zone.

     The Mount Union faithful in the crowd of 6,051 were frenzied after the momentum-shifting play and it left the Raiders on Cloud Nine.

     "That was exciting," said senior Raider defensive end Sam Vucelich, who led the team with seven tackles.  "You could feel the momentum surge our way.  When the game was over, it was like a dream.   It was almost unreal to win it again."

     The Raiders and Warhawks were playing in a much-anticipated rematch - the first ever between teams that played for the title the previous year - after Mount Union had earned a 35-28 win in the 2005 Stagg Bowl to claim its eighth national crown and the first in two seasons.

     After that game, the Raiders had declared they were back.

     Still, they had to prove it against the upset-minded Warhawks a second time and Whitewater didn't make it easy and Mount Union struggled early on.

     The Raiders drove to the Warhawks' 45 before Nate Kmic committed his first fumble since Week 2.

     They had a long pass called back by a penalty and another called incomplete on a judgement call although it appeared to be hauled in for a long gain along the sideline.

     They even trailed for the first time in 59 quarters when the Warhawks' Jeff Schebler connected on the first of his Stagg Bowl-record three field goals from 25 yards out with 2:50 remaining in the first quarter.

     However, the Raiders kept their composure the way champions should.

     "We stayed poised no matter what happened," said Mount Union head coach Larry Kehres.  "We didn't fall apart when those things happened and we came together."

     Things started looking up when Greg Micheli was inserted at quarterback and led the Raiders on a pair of scoring drives totaling 18 plays and 134 yards to begin the second quarter.

     Micheli, who was later named as the game's MVP, hooked up with Anthony Antonucci for a 2-yard scoring toss and ran into the end zone from 12 yards out to put Mount Union on top 14-3 with 6:52 remaining in the first half.

     Like a true title contender, the Warhawks answered with two drives of their own.

     Whitewater's Jordan Wells returned a kickoff 83 yards before being brought down by Raider kicker Mike Zimmerman and Warhawk quarterback Justin Jacobs capitalized on a 1-yard plunge two plays later to get the Warhawks within 14-10.

     Schebler, who also set a record for points by a kicker at 10, made good on a 24-yard field goal attempt just before halftime to get Whitewater within 14-13 at the intermission.

     "We felt pretty good going into halftime," said Warhawks coach Bob Berezowitz.  "But things fell apart in the third quarter."

     Both teams struggled at the beginning of the frame as Raider quarterback Mike Jorris threw an interception on Mount Union's first possession of the second half and Whitewater Justin Beaver returned the favor moments later with a fumble that was recovered by Pat McCullough.

     "We had a couple sloppy series to begin the second half, but then we made some big plays," said Kehres.

     The Raiders controlled the ball for just 4:46 of the frame, but won the scoreboard with a 14-0 after Micheli hooked up with Pierre Garcon for a 46-yard scoring strike and Kostelnik and Rees combined on the special teams play for Mount Union's eighth non-offensive touchdown of the season just 2:46 later.

     "That was the first punt we've had blocked all year," said Berezowitz.  "They put a twist on us and we made a mistake.  We're disappointed that we weren't able to finish it off when we had some momentum.  They made the plays and we didn't."

     The Warhawks tried to get back in the game with a 36-yard field goal from Schebler with 14:46 reamining in the game.

     However, Micheli led the Raiders on a 7-play, 63-yard drive moments later which he capped with a 10-yard aerial to Garcon for a touchdown.

     For his efforts, which included an 18-of-22 passing performance for 202 yards, Micheli was named the Stagg Bowl MVP.

     Eight of his completions went to Garcon, who accumulated 116 yards.

     Meanwhile, sophomore running back Nate Kmic, who had led the Raiders to the playoffs with over 800 yards in the postseason after earning MVP honors in 2005, collected 111 yards to set a new single-season school record in rushing at 2,365 yards.

     Defensively, Mount Union held Beaver to 87 yards and stymied Jacobs, who went 12-of-27 for 148 yards after being sacked twice - once by Rees and once by Nick Parr.

     Overall, the Raiders held a 363-235 advantage in total offense - a decisive statistic for a title game.

     "Every championship you win feels different," said Kmic.  "Hopefully, there are more in the future. Last year was great because it was my first one and the first one for the team in a couple years.   This one is more special because it was a repeat."

     Nine was certainly fine.

Mount Union 35       Wis-Whitewater 16

Scoring

Individual Statistics

Rushing - Whitewater, Beaver 23-87, Douglas 1-11, Hunt 1-5, Jacobs 11-(-16);  Mount Union, Kmic 25-111, Micheli 9-42, Garcon 2-11, Jorris 3-(-3).

Passing - Whitewater, Jacobs 12-27-0-148;  Mount Union, Micheli 18-22-0-202, Jorris 0-5-1-0.

Receiving - Whitewater, Stanley 6-82, Mrkvicka 4-40, Schmitt 2-26;  Mount Union, Garcon 8-116, Wray 5-43, Antonucci 4-30, Morring 1-13.

  *By Jack R. Weber Jr.  Appeared in The Alliance Review 12-18-06; photos by Gayle Stickley.