Reasnover, Red Devils Run Over Iowa Wesleyan, 29-15
EUREKA, Ill. -- Eureka College sophomore running back LeAnthony Reasnover (Momence, Ill./Momence H.S.) became the fifth player in program history to rush for four touchdowns in a single game, racking up 140 yards for his ninth career 100-yard game and lifting the Red Devils to a 29-15 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference win over Iowa Wesleyan at McKinzie Field.
Reasnover joins Eric Leiser (11/2/1991), Ralph McKinzie (10/15/1921), Dorrell Baugh (10/5/2013) and Nick Lindsey (11/7/2009) as Red Devils to score at least four rushing touchdowns in a game.
Leiser owns the EC record with six rushing touchdowns against Concordia (Wis.) on Nov. 2, 1991.
Saturday's victory improved the Red Devils to 6-1 overall, EC's best start through seven games since the 1995 Illini-Badger Football Conference championship team started with an identical 6-1 mark. The Red Devils' 5-1 UMAC record matches the 2013 squad for the best six-game start in conference play since joining the league in 2009.
Eighth-year Eureka head coach Kurt Barth won his 35th contest directing the Red Devils on Saturday. He needs one more victory to tie EC Hall of Famer Ralph McKinzie (1921-37) as the winningest head coach in Eureka football history. Barth also joined Tom Hosier (1974-78) and his own former coach, John Tully (1990-94), as Eureka head coaches to have multiple seasons with six wins or more.
Eureka had to come from behind Saturday after the Tigers struck first for a 7-0 lead. Raul Alvarez finished an 80-yard scoring drive with an 18-yard touchdown throw to Rodolfo Amezcua less than five minutes into the contest.
The Red Devils evened the score when Reasnover broke free on an 11-yard touchdown run and a 7-7 tie at the 3:43 mark of the quarter. EC moved in front for good later in the frame when Reasnover found the end zone again, this time on a 35-yard run on the final play of the first quarter.
Reasnover and the Red Devils continued their rushing onslaught later in the half, snagging a 19-7 advantage on Reasnover's 1-yard touchdown plunge with 9:29 remaining before halftime.
Eureka extended its lead to 22-7 on the final play of the first half when senior kicker Tyler Winders (Pekin, Ill./Pekin H.S.) drilled a 37-yard field goal, his 20th career field goal to Travis Huber (2009-12) for the all-time program record for field goals made.
Reasnover's fourth touchdown run of the day pushed the game out of reach, a 1-yard plunge early in the fourth quarter. The Tigers' last gasp was a 9-yard touchdown throw from Alvarez to Jeremy Gomez with 11:00 to play, but the Red Devils' kept IWC off the board for the remainder of the afternoon to secure the victory.
Eureka quarterbacks Colton Johnson (Lewistown, Ill./Lewistown H.S.) and Drew Barth (Minonk, Ill./Fieldcrest H.S.) combined for nine completions and 94 yards to six different receivers.
The Eureka defense limited IWC to 271 yards and a 2-for-9 effort on third-down conversion attempts. Junior Ray Vogel (Bartonville, Ill./Limestone H.S.) had 3.0 sacks and senior Ricky Martinez (Yorba Linda, Calif./JSerra Catholic H.S.) had two interceptions, one of which thwarted the Tigers' final offensive series of the day.
Omar Funches paced the IWC offense with 73 rushing yards on nine carries. Alvarez finished 9-for-22 for 179 yards.
The Red Devils have now won five of their last six homecoming contests. Saturday's decision also marked the Red Devils' first win over Iowa Wesleyan at McKinzie Field since a 34-33 victory on Oct. 5, 1985. Eureka and Iowa Wesleyan have split four meetings since the Tigers joined NCAA Division III and the UMAC in 2013.
Eureka will try for its third 7-1 start in the 125-year history of the program next Saturday when the Red Devils visit Crown for a noon UMAC kickoff in St. Bonifacius, Minn.