No. 7 UW-Whitewater 35, Monmouth (Ill.) 10

Junior Ryan Wisniewski caught 6 passes for 67 yards and 2 TDs. Here he is with his first TD catch.

The No. 7 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater football team scored 28 first-half points Saturday afternoon on its way to a 35-10 triumph over Monmouth (Ill.) in the first round of the NCAA Division III Championship at Perkins Stadium.

The Warhawks (10-1 overall) advance to the second round, where they’ll face Wartburg (Iowa) next Saturday, Nov. 30, 12 p.m. CST, Perkins Stadium.

UW-Whitewater picked up 28 first downs and totaled 478 yards of offense, including 278 on the ground. The team also held the ball for nearly 39 minutes in the contest.

The Warhawks’ defense held the Fighting Scots (7-3) to six first downs and 172 total yards, including zero on the ground.

Junior Max Meylor completed 16 or 26 passes for 183 yards and 4 TDs.

Junior quarterback Max Meylor (Mt. Horeb, Wis./Mt. Horeb) registered 183 yards and four touchdowns through the air and added 34 yards on the ground. Senior running back Jarrod Ware (Bradley, Ill./Bradley-Bourbonnais) posted 20 carries for 110 yards, and junior running back Alex Peete (Ringwood, Ill./Johnsburg) rushed 16 times for 80 yards and one touchdown. Junior wide receiver Ryan Wisniewski (Sparta, Wis./Sparta) collected six receptions for 67 yards and two scores.

Junior Jarrod Ware rushed 20 times for 110 yards.

Senior linebacker Matt Anderson (Rockford, Ill./Lutheran) led the defense with seven tackles. Senior defensive lineman Jordan Brand (Chicago, Ill./St. Rita) recorded four tackles, including two sacks, and senior defensive back Nate Tranel (Lancaster, Wis./Lancaster) made five stops, including one for a loss.

UW-Whitewater got on the board first, taking advantage of field position at the Monmouth 44-yard line. Meylor hit Wisniewski on a 13-yard pass with 2:40 left in the first quarter.

After the Fighting Scots fumbled the ensuing kickoff, Meylor hit Peete on a 26-yard screen pass to double the advantage to 14-0 with 2:24 on the clock.

Meylor completed his third touchdown of the day two minutes into the second quarter, hitting junior wide receiver Derek Kumerow (Bartlett, Ill./South Elgin) with an 11-yard strike to complete a seven-play, 66-yard drive.

Following a Monmouth punt, the Warhawks drove 72 yards in 13 plays to make it 28-0 with 8:21 remaining. Peete completed the set with a 3-yard touchdown run.

The Fighting Scots got on the board early in the second half on a touchdown with 12:02 left in the third quarter.

On the first play of the next drive, Meylor found Wisniewski for a 52-yard touchdown to make it 35-7 with 11:41 to go in the quarter.

Monmouth completed the scoring on a field goal five minutes into the fourth quarter. UW-Whitewater held the ball for more than 10 minutes in the period to run the clock down.