In a tough road contest on Saturday, the Hillsdale College football team seized control with a 14-point third quarter and got a critical stop on a two-point try with 31 seconds to play to outlast host Thomas More for the Chargers' third victory in four games.
Trailing 35-21, Thomas More scored two fourth quarter touchdowns to erase the deficit, but Hillsdale's Hunter Sperling blocked the Saints' extra point attempt on the first touchdown, forcing Thomas More to go for two with under a minute to go to try and tie the game and force overtime.
On the deciding two-point conversion, Hillsdale's defense brough pressure that forced Thomas More quarterback Rae'Von Vaden out of the pocket, and ultimately short of the goal line as he lost the football and was forced to jump on it to recover, stopping the play in its tracks.
An onside kick attempt by Thomas More was jumped on by Hillsdale's Kyle Riffel, and the Chargers were able to kneel out the clock and secure victory.
In the victory, the Chargers got an impressive quarterbacking performance from senior Garrit Aissen, who completed 77% of his passes for 217 yards and tied his career high with four touchdown passes. Aissen connected with freshman Shea Ruddy twice on back-to-back drives a 33-yard touchdown and a 28-yard touchdown to give Hillsdale a 14-7 lead early in the second quarter.
Thomas More answered back with a scoring drive of their own to tie the game, then took advantage of a short field created by a strip-sack of Aissen to pull ahead 21-14. After both teams traded punts, Aissen led what ended up being an extremely consequential drive heading into the half. Hillsdale took over with 1:45 on the clock before halftime and the Chargers 64 yards in 1:35, capped by Aissen's 28 yard touchdown pass to Sam Lee to pull the Chargers back to even at 21-all heading into the half.
Hillsdale got the ball first to start the third quarter and Aissen directed another gem of a drive, going 69 yards in nine plays. The senior quarterback found H-Back Ty Williams in the end zone for a nine-yard scoring pass to give Hillsdale a 28-21 lead, and the Chargers would never trail again the rest of the way.
A blocked punt by Shea Ruddy on Thomas More's next drive gave the Chargers a short field and Hillsdale cashed in again, as Michael Herzog capped an 11 play drive that took 6:31 off the clock with a one yard rushing touchdown to put Hillsdale up 35-21. That two-score edge was just enough for Hillsdale to hold off a furious fourth quarter rally by the Saints and secure the victory.
Aissen connected with Ruddy four times for 75 yards in the contest, and Sam Lee three times for 42 yards, while also hooking up with senior tight end Michael Harding twice for3 1 yards as well. Against one of the G-MAC's toughest run defenses, Herzog couldn't quite break the 100 yard mark but was effective enough to get the job done, carrying the ball 22 times for 75 yards and a critical score. Aissen added 24 yards on the ground on 14 carries.
Defensively, Jacob Vance continued his strong play at linebacker for the Chargers, finishing with six tackles, including a sack, and a pass breakup. Safety Sam Zemis added three tackles and intercepted a Thomas More passing attempt in the third quarter as well, while safeties Will Whims and Vince Francescone each finished with five tackles.
Kicker Julian Lee hit all five extra points for the Chargers, with every point making a big difference in a wild contest decided by a razor-thin margin.
Hillsdale is now 3-5 overall, 3-3 in the G-MAC, and 3-1 in its last four games after an 0-4 start. The Chargers have a shot at a big finish to the season, and will host Lake Erie next Saturday at 2 p.m. looking to maintain its recent momentum.
Photo by Isabella Sheehan