ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The (RV) Washington University in St. Louis football team earned its first ranked win since 2018 on Saturday afternoon, beating No. 15 DePauw 37-27. It marks the Bears' first-ever win in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC), moving them to 2-0 on the year with a 1-0 mark in conference play.
WashU wasted no time getting on the board as senior
Kellen Fraile intercepted Scott Ballentine's pass on the first drive of the game, running it back for a 64-yard touchdown. Junior
Matias Adrogue converted the extra point for a 7-0 lead.
On the next DePauw drive, junior
Aidan Hughes forced a fumble which was recovered by sophomore
Teddy Koehl, putting the ball back in the Bears' hands.
WashU followed with a four-play drive, culminating in a 25-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback
Levi Moore to senior
Makael Carter. Adrogue's kick was good for a 14-0 lead with 7:46 on the clock in the first quarter.
DePauw was forced to punt on its next drive and the Bears brought the ball down to the eight before Adrogue hit a 25-yard field goal, extending WashU's lead to 17-0.
WashU started the second quarter with another touchdown, capping off an 11-play drive with a one-yard touchdown from Moore. Adrogue converted the kick for a 24-0 Bears' lead.
Coming out of halftime, the Bears – who won the pre-game coin toss – received the ball and went on a six-play scoring drive. Moore scored his second rushing touchdown of the day, unleashing for a 61-yard run. Adrogue's kick was good for a 31-0 lead.
On WashU's next drive, the ball was fumbled and recovered by DePauw's Toreeq Jimoh-Toreeq. The Tigers used two plays to score as quarterback Jack Kazmierczak hit Evan Pitzer for 16 yards. Jacob Hein's kick was good for a 31-7 Bears' edge.
WashU punted on its next drive and the Tigers put together a two-play drive. Ultimately, Kazmierczak connected with Luke Dockery for a 23-yard touchdown. The two-point conversion play was no good, making it a 31-13 game.
After reaching the 27, Adrogue and the Bears lined up for a 45-yard field goal, which was good. It marks his longest-career field goal and put the Bears up 34-13 heading into the fourth quarter.
DePauw began the fourth quarter with a six-play drive, finishing it off with a two-yard touchdown from Carson Johnson. The Tigers' two-point conversion was good for a 34-21 game.
The Bears were forced to punt on the ensuing drive but senior
Brett Kersemeier intercepted the Tigers' pass to give WashU the ball back.
With just under four minutes to play, the Bears scored their final points on a seven-play drive, which ended with Adrogue hitting a 42-yard field goal for a 37-21 lead.
DePauw began its final drive of the game with 1:37 remaining. The Tigers went on to score with 21 second left as Kazmierczak connected with Carter Foran for a 35-yard touchdown. The two-point conversion was unsuccessful.
WashU had 373 yards of total offense (160 passing, 213 rushing) while DePauw had 410 (324 passing, 86 rushing).
Moore was 16-for-26 for 160 yards and one touchdown. He also led the Bears' rushing game with 96 yards on 10 attempts with two touchdowns.
Senior
Matthew Kinoshita had 70 rushing yards on 17 attempts while sophomore
Brayden Lewis had 47 rushing yards on 13 attempts.
Carter led the receivers with 52 yards on four catches with a touchdown. Senior
Drew Bomar had 41 receiving yards on three catches.
Defensively senior
Spencer Snipe led the Bears with eight total tackles (5 solo, 3 assists) while sophomore
Brad Shearer had five solo tackles. Senior
Henry Murr had five total tackles (2 solo, 3 assists).
WashU hits the road next weekend for a 1 p.m. ET game at Wittenberg on Saturday.
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Elevating scholar-champions requires resources beyond the institutional budget. Through the W Club, generous alumni, parents, and friends provide unrestricted support that is essential to the extraordinary WashU student-athlete experience—and the ongoing growth and development of the department. Annual support for Athletics allows the Bears to consistently rise to national levels of competition and ensures that our student-athletes enjoy exceptional opportunities as they train, compete, and lead. To make a gift to the Annual Fund for Athletics, please visit our secure online giving form or contact the Athletics Advancement Office at athletics@wustl.edu.
