ADA, Ohio — Halloween was anything but scary for Ohio Northern University as the Polar Bears defeated Marietta College, 62-21, Saturday (Oct. 31) night in Ohio Athletic Conference football action. Ohio Northern improves to 6-2 on the season and 5-2 in the OAC, while Marietta moves to 1-7 overall and 1-6 in conference play.
Roger Bush (Palm Bay, Fla./Bayside) returned the opening kickoff 36 yards to the Pioneer 43-yard line giving Marietta great field position for its first drive of the game. The Pioneers wasted little time capitalizing on the short field as Bush capped a 10-play drive with a 13-yard touchdown run giving Marietta a 7-0 lead just 4:37 into the first quarter.
The quick score proved to be a wakeup call for the Polar Bears. Ohio Northern answered with 24 straight points. Andrew DiMario hit a 22-yard field goal, Ricardo Johnson hit Devon Price on a 27-yard touchdown pass, Justin Magazine scored on a 15-yard run and Johnson reached pay dirt from 20 yards out.
Marietta slowed the ONU momentum with a touchdown in the final minutes of the second quarter.
Lucas Havens (Granville Summit, Pa./Troy Area) connected with
Hunter Roknich (Industry, Pa./Western Beaver) on a 28-yard scoring strike drawing the Pioneers within 10 points, 24-14.
But the Polar Bears answered right back marching 83 yards in 1:58 to lead 31-14 at halftime. Johnson capped the drive with his second touchdown of the half, scoring on a nine-yard run this time.
Any hopes of a Marietta comeback were dashed in the third quarter. Ohio Northern added 21 points in the period as Johnson and Price hooked up on two TD passes and Johnson ran for his third rushing touchdown of the game.
Marietta added a final touchdown early in the fourth quarter.
Nick O'Neal (Mont Belvieu, Texas/Barbers Hill) dove in from two-yards out to cap an 11-play, 59-yard drive.
Bush led the Pioneer attack rushing for 122 yards on 22 carries. It was his second straight 100-yard game. Havens added 67 yards rushing, while O'Neal finished with 63 yards on the ground. Havens completed 5-of-13 passes for 38 yards.
Magazine ran for 200 yards on 24 carries, while Johnson gained 106 yards on 10 carries including three touchdowns. Johnson completed 13-of-19 passes for 235 yards and three scores. Price caught 10 passes for 182 yards and three TD's.
Marietta returns home to host rival Muskingum University on Saturday (Nov. 7). Kickoff for the annual Shrine Game is set for 1:30 p.m. Fans can follow all the Pioneer teams all year long at
pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at
facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on Twitter and Instagram.
