LA CROSSE – The No. 10 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater football team tallied 20 fourth-quarter points and pitched a second-half shutout Saturday in a 30-7 triumph over No. 23 UW-La Crosse in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest at Roger Herring Stadium.
 
The Warhawks (4-0 overall, 1-0 WIAC) out-gained the Eagles 418-158 in total yards, taking the lead for good on a 28-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Cole Wilber (Mission Viejo, Calif./Dana Hills) to junior wide receiver Nathaniel Osterloo (Mt. Horeb, Wis./Mt. Horeb) midway through the third quarter.
 
Wilber finished 14-for-24 passing with 244 yards and three touchdowns. Sophomore running back Alex Peete (Ringwood, Ill./Johnsburg) led the rushing attack with 27 carries for 100 yards and a score, and junior running back Ronny Ponick (Stanley, Wis./Stanley-Boyd) added 12 carries for 54 yards and a pair of catches for 29 yards.
 
Junior linebacker Jacob Erbs (Reedsburg, Wis./Reedsburg) led the defense with eight tackles. Senior linebacker Bryce Leszczynski (Milwaukee, Wis./Pius XI) collected seven stops, and senior defensive lineman Harry Henschler (Janesville, Wis./Craig) posted five tackles, including 2.5 for a loss and 1.5 sacks.
 
After a scoreless first quarter, sophomore kicker Wojciech Gasienica (Norridge, Ill./Ridgewood) put UW-Whitewater on the board with a 35-yard field goal with 13:09 to go in the second quarter to cap an eight-play, 45-yard drive.
 
UW-La Crosse (2-2, 0-1) responded later in the period with a 15-play, 65-yard drive that ended in a touchdown to take a 7-3 lead with one minute to go in the half.
 
The touchdown pass from Wilber to Osterloo finished off a 14-play, 75-yard drive by UW-Whitewater that started the second half.
 
After the Warhawks forced a punt early in the fourth quarter clinging to a 10-7 lead, the offense turned the game as Wilber hit sophomore wide receiver JT Parish (Cambridge, Wis./Cambridge), who took the slant pass and sprinted past three defenders to the end zone for an 81-yard touchdown.
 
Senior defensive back Famus Hasty (Naperville, Ill./Neuqua Valley) intercepted Ben Schramski on the first play of the ensuing drive, and UW-Whitewater turned the miscue into an 11-play, 55-yard drive capped by a third-down pass from Wilber to senior wide receiver Jerimie Richards (Country Club Hills, Ill./Andrew) from five yards out to make it 23-7 with 5:14 on the clock.
 
Following a turnover on downs, Peete closed out an eight-play, 39-yard drive with a three-yard touchdown run, his eighth of the year, to account for the final margin. The scoring play was set up by a 30-yard strike from Wilber to sophomore wide receiver Ryan Wisniewski (Sparta, Wis./Sparta).
 
The Warhawks return to action next Saturday, Oct. 6, at 2 p.m. for a showdown against No. 12 UW-Oshkosh. The game is part of Family Fest and Football Alumni Day at UW-Whitewater, and a pregame concert featuring the Eddie Butts Band will begin at noon in the Perkins Stadium parking lot.