Hanover vs. Manchester, Oct. 24
Streak ends with home loss to Manchester
Manchester College's football squad remained unbeaten in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference play with a 30-8 win against Hanover College Saturday, Oct. 24, at L.S. Ayres Field.
Manchester (4-3; 4-0 HCAC) totaled 438 yards of offense, limited Hanover to just 232 total yards, picked off four passes and held the ball for nearly 39 minutes to snap a 12-game losing streak against the Panthers.
The victory was only Manchester's second against Hanover since 1971. The 22-point margin of victory matches the largest in the history of the series for the Spartans, which defeated the Panthers 28-6 during the 1940 campaign.
Manchester jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first period. The Spartans' Jermiah Jones intercepted Hanover quarterback C.J. Croft (Fort Campbell, Ky.) on the third play of the game and raced 42 yards for a touchdown to give Manchester a 7-0 lead less the one minute into the contest.
Senior running back Brandon Wells scored the first of his three touchdowns on a 43-yard pass from quarterback Justin Minnich with 5:40 left in the opening quarter.
After a scoreless second period, Wells added a 23-yard field goal with 4:19 to bump the Spartans' lead to 17-0. He later collected a tipped ball and sprinted 58 yards for a touchdown to increase Manchester's lead to 23-0 with 22 seconds left in the period.
Hanover ended its scoring drought in the opening minute of the fourth quarter. Senior tight end Bobby Smart (Coral Springs, Fla.) soared to snag a 31-yard pass from freshman quarterback Shawn Gibson (Indianapolis, Ind.) in the back of the endzone for a touchdown with 14:08 left in the contest.
Gibson lunged in for the two-point conversion to get the Panthers within 23-8.
Manchester countered on its next possession. The Spartans used a seven-play, 77-yard drive to lock up the triumph. Wells scored on an eight-yard run with 10:37 left and booted the extra point for the final margin.
Hanover (1-6; 1-3 HCAC) was limited to a total of minus-four yards in its final two drives during the closing minutes of the contest.
Croft completed 12-of-32 passes for 125 yards. He was picked off four times, which led to 10 Manchester points. Gibson relieved late in the third quarter and finished 5-of-8 for 65 yards, including the touchdown pass to Smart.
Sophomore receiver Daniel Passafiume (Louisville, Ky.), who entered the contest ranked second in the nation in catches per game, had 11 receptions for 106 yards.
Minnich led Manchester's rushing attack with 117 yards on 19 carries. He also completed 10-of-17 passes for 161 yards and two scores.
Running back Adam Schell added 94 yards on 15 attempts for the Spartans, while Wells ran for 68 yards on 15 carries.
Wells also had 106 yards on three receptions, including the two touchdowns.
Freshman linebacker Andy Dalton (Guilford, Ind.) led Hanover's defensive unit with 19 tackles, including 11 solo stops. Sophomore defensive back Rory Mannering (Walton, Ind.) added 17 tackles.
