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The Hillsdale football team rebounded from a tough loss last week with a 44-0 victory against the Kentucky Wesleyan College Panthers in its homecoming game Sept. 27. The win moved the Chargers to an even 2-2 on the season and 1-1 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.
The win was the Chargers’ first homecoming victory since 2021 and their first shutout win since 2019.
“Anytime you win your homecoming game it adds to an already special event,” head coach Nate Shreffler said. “I feel like we did our part in making it a really special weekend.”
Sophomore quarterback Colin McKernan went 15 for 21 on pass attempts with three touchdowns and did not throw an interception or take a sack. McKernan also added 75 rushing yards which is a new career-high.
Freshman tailback Ben Ngishu led the team in rushing, running for 117 yards on 19 carries with two touchdowns.
“I give credit to my offensive line,” Ngishu said. “As a running back, you are only as good as your offensive line. When your offensive line is good, it opens up lanes for me to be able to succeed as well.”
After getting a quick stop on defense, the Chargers scored a touchdown on their first possession, capped off by a 15-yard run by Ngishu. The Chargers caught the Panther defense by surprise on the next play, earning a two-point conversion and an 8-0 lead.
After another Hillsdale touchdown extended the lead to 14-0, the Panthers quickly found themselves on the Hillsdale 2-yard line with on first and goal at the end of the first quarter.
The Charger defense held the Panthers back on four consecutive plays and forced a turnover on downs, keeping the shutout intact. The Chargers again kept the Panthers off the board with another goal line stand in the fourth quarter.
“Preserving the shutout with a couple of goal line stands was awesome,” Shreffler said. “The guys really wanted that zero to stay on the scoreboard, and they made some big plays to get it done.”
In total, the Charger defense got a successful stop on third down nine out of 11 times and three out of four times on fourth down.
Junior receiver Shea Ruddy said the team did a good job capitalizing on opportunities and limiting mistakes.
“We were getting ourselves in third and short situations which is key to making long drives and scoring,” Ruddy said. “We also limited pre-snap penalties to keep us out of third and long situations.”
The Chargers also outperformed the Panthers in rushing yards with 308 yards on the ground for Hillsdale and 98 for Kentucky Wesleyan.
“Offensively, we continue to get better running the ball,” Shreffler said. “When we can do that, it opens up opportunities in the passing game and we executed very well throwing the ball on Saturday. The offensive line opened up some nice holes for the backs and they did a great job protecting the QB when we threw it. No sacks on the day is a pretty big deal.”
The Chargers will travel on the road this week to face Tiffin University Oct. 4.
