The No. 7 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater football team engineered a big first half and hung on in the second half Saturday for a 41-28 triumph over Wartburg (Iowa) in the second round of the NCAA Division III Championship at Perkins Stadium.
The Warhawks (11-1 overall) advance to the national quarterfinals for the 13th time in the last 15 years and will face No. 1 ranked Mary Hardin-Baylor (Texas) next Saturday, Dec. 7, at a location and time to be announced Sunday afternoon.
UW-Whitewater held Wartburg (10-2) to 32 yards rushing and forced five turnovers in the contest.
Senior running back
Jarrod Ware (Bradley, Ill./Bradley-Bourbonnais) rushed for 58 yards, and junior tight end
Jared Zausch (Saukville, Wis./Ozaukee) posted four receptions for 41 yards. Senior running back
Ronny Ponick (Stanley, Wis./Stanley-Boyd) rushed for 31 yards and one touchdown and caught a 12-yard touchdown.
Senior linebacker
Matt Anderson (Rockford, Ill./Lutheran) tallied a team-high eight tackles, including one sack, and one interception. Junior linebacker
Kaleb Kaminski (Tomahawk, Wis./Tomahawk) registered four tackles, including one for a loss, and added one forced fumble and two interceptions.
The Warhawks' special teams made several big plays during the game, including a punt return for a touchdown, five kickoff returns for 146 yards, two made field goals and five punts for an average of 41.6 yards, including three inside the Knights' 20-yard line.
Senior defensive back
Garrett Purdy (Naperville, Ill./Central) posted an interception on Wartburg's first drive of the game, and UW-Whitewater took advantage of the good field position.
Five plays after a 26-yard completion from junior quarterback
Max Meylor (Mt. Horeb, Wis./Mt. Horeb) to junior wide receiver
Derek Kumerow (Bartlett, Ill./South Elgin), junior running back
Alex Peete (Ringwood, Ill./Johnsburg) dove over the pile at the goal line for a 1-yard touchdown with 9:17 on the clock.
The Warhawks doubled the lead two minutes later, taking advantage of a forced fumble by Kaminski. Ware ran down to the Knights' 12-yard line, and Ponick caught a screen pass for a 12-yard score.
After a three-and-out, UW-Whitewater added to its lead on a 36-yard field goal by junior kicker
Wojciech Gasienica (Norridge, Ill./Ridgewood) with 2:37 to play in the first quarter.
After a Wartburg touchdown, the Warhawks responded. Junior wide receiver
Ryan Wisniewski (Sparta, Wis./Sparta) returned the ensuing kickoff 46 yards, then threw a 26-yard pass to Zausch on a reverse pass. Three plays later, Meylor ran around the right side for a 4-yard touchdown at the 11:32 mark.
Following a three-and-out by the Knights, senior
Justin Prostinak (Milwaukee, Wis./Lake Country Lutheran) went untouched on the punt return 67 yards for the touchdown and a 31-7 advantage with 9:21 remaining in the first half.
UW-Whitewater was the first on the board in the third quarter as Gasienica knocked a 27-yard field goal through the uprights with 9:50 to play. The drive was keyed by Wisniewski's 38-yard return to near midfield.
Wartburg scored on the next drive to cut its deficit to 34-14, but the Warhawks took advantage of strong field position again later in the quarter. Three plays after a key third-down completion from Meylor to sophomore wide receiver
Tyler Holte (Elgin, Ill./St. Edward Central Catholic), Ponick pushed up the middle for a 1-yard touchdown and a 41-14 lead with 2:27 left in the period.
The Knights tacked on touchdowns on their next two drives and had the ball in UW-W territory just past the midway point of the fourth quarter, but Kaminski picked off Noah Dodd at the Warhawks' 27-yard line.
After a UW-Whitewater punt to the Wartburg 9-yard line, Kaminski registered his second interception of the quarter and returned it to the Knights' 14-yard line. From there, the Warhawks knelt out the final two minutes of regulation.
Next Saturday's game against Mary Hardin-Baylor is a rematch of the 2018 national semifinal, which the Crusaders won 31-14 in Belton, Texas.
