Defiance Stays Hot, Rolls Past Anderson 34-7

ANDERSON, Ind. -- Defiance College racked up well over 400 yards of total offense for the third-straight game and raced past Anderson for a 34-7 road victory on Saturday. The win was DCs third-straight victory and kept the Jackets tied with Franklin atop the HCAC standings.

DC has featured an explosive and well-balanced attack on offense over its last three contests, averaging over 200 yards on the ground and through the air en route to 94 points and a 31.3 average scoring output. The Jackets have also struck early and often during the recent surge, outscoring the opposition by a healthy, 40-7, clip in the last three opening quarters.

Saturdays 27-point win over the Ravens was no different, as the Jackets raced out to a 13-0 lead in the first quarter and eventually built a 34-0 advantage. Defiance piled up 426 total yards of offense thanks to another outstanding game from the trio of Hans Vetter, David Thornton and Luke Dillon.

Vetter and Thornton fueled the ground game by combining for 171 rushing yards on 34 carries. Thornton backed up his 154-yard performance from one week ago by carrying the ball 21 times for 99 yards and Vetter tucked it 13 times for a total of 72 yards.

Vetter was on the mark through the air, connecting on 12 of his 20 throws for 230 yards and four touchdowns. Dillon was the primary target once again, as the All-American candidate caught four of his eight receptions for touchdowns and racked up 173 yards in just three quarters of work. Dillon tied his one-week old DC single-game record with the four touchdown catches despite not playing in the final quarter.

The six-foot, five-inch receivers sixth-straight 100-yard game and second-straight game over the 150-yard plateau puts Dillon at 66 catches for 946 yards on the season. Dillon is now just 18 catches and 263 yards away from the DC single-season records and with eight touchdowns over the last two games, now needs three more scores to reach the schools single-season touchdown mark as well.

The single-season records are not the only ones in danger over Defiances final four games, as Dillons recent touchdown binge has pushed him to 25 for his career. Dillon is now just one shy of tying DCs career mark of 26 set by Sam Williams from 1991-94.

For as dominant as the DC offense was on Saturday, the Yellow Jacket defense was equally impressive in holding an explosive Anderson team to only seven points and 228 total yards of offense.

Defiance narrowly missed its first shutout of the season, keeping AU off the scoreboard until the Ravens finally found the end zone with 4:42 remaining in the game.

The Jackets piled up four sacks, six hits for lost yardage, three interceptions and a pair of forced fumbles. Keith Snyder led the way once again with eight tackles and Jeremy Bayer turned in seven tackles to go with one sack, two stops for negative yardage and a fumble recovery.

Chris Tietje also notched seven hits to go with a sack and a pair of forced fumbles and Nic Cass picked off a pair of passes and broke up another. Andrew Mickey and R.J. Chidester each recorded a sack in the win.

Defiance moves to 4-2 overall and 3-0 in the HCAC with its third-straight victory. The Jackets will look to stay perched atop the league standings when they host Hanover on Oct. 20 at 1:30 pm.