Tigers shut out at Greenville

GREENVILLE, Ill. - The Iowa Wesleyan defense played well in its final road game at Greenville University on Saturday, but another tough day on the offensive end led to a 21-0 loss.

The Tiger defense came up big on the first drive of the day. On Greenville's second play from scrimmage after the opening kick off, Raul Areteaga picked off a pass from Panther quarterback George Harris at IW's 30-yard line. Unfortunately, IW couldn't capitalize and the Tigers had to punt.

Greenville scored first, ending its third drive of the game with a one-yard rushing touchdown by Paul Garrett. That was the only score of the first half, as the Panthers led 7-0 at the break.

Greenville stretched the lead to two possessions early in the third quarter, connecting on a 27-yard field goal. After three periods, IW trailed 10-0.

Greenville hit another field goal early in the fourth quarter, but it was still a two-possession game. The dagger didn't come until the final four minutes when Greenville's Christian Moss scored on a four-yard touchdown run to put the final nail in the coffin.

Starting quarterback Leo Alvarez went 3-6 for 28 yards passing the ball. Backup quarterback Jeremiah Ollison went 3-7 for 37 yards.

Ben Thomas was the top offensive performer for IW, catching two passes for 43 yards. The running game saw just two players reach double digits, with Austin McBeth and Guylon Moore hitting 10 yards each.

The defense was co-led by Josef McCulloch and Marco Ventura. Each had 10 tackles. Ventura and Arteaga each had one interception. Billy Williams forced one fumble and Jeremiah Silone had a fumble recovery.

The Tigers are now 0-9 overall and 0-7 in conference play. They'll close out the season this weekend when they host the University of Northwestern - St. Paul on Saturday, Nov. 16, at 12 p.m.