SALEM, Va. — Levell Coppage had 111 yards rushing and three touchdowns and Wisconsin-Whitewater scored 10 points in the final 1 minute, 17 seconds to beat defending champion Mount Union 38-28 in the NCAA Division III championship game on Saturday.
The Purple Raiders (14-1) had their winning streak snapped at 29 games.
Jeff Donovan was 26 of 40 for 323 yards and 2 touchdown passes for the Warhawks (15-0), who won their second national championship in the past three years. This is the fifth consecutive year that the two teams have met in the national championship game.
Saturday’s game had its starting time moved back five hours due to a winter storm that dumped more than a foot of snow on Salem in less than 24 hours.
With the game tied 28-28, Wisconsin-Whitewater took over on its own 42-yard line with 3:15 to play.
Coppage got the Warhawks into Mount Union territory with an 11-yard run, then four plays later put Whitewater up for good with a 31-yard run down the left sideline that ended with a dive into the end zone. Whitewater added a 44-yard field goal by Jeff Schebler with 26 seconds to play.
Mount Union had tied the game at 28-28 on a 5-yard run by quarterback Kurt Rocco. Rocco was 23 of 39 for 383 yards and 3 touchdowns. Mount Union All-American wide receiver Cecil Shorts III had 10 catches for 185yards and 2 touchdowns. He injured his leg late in the game and arrived at the postgame news conference on crutches.
NAIA CHAMPIONSHIP
SIOUX FALLS 25, LINDENWOOD 22
ROME, Ga. - Sioux Falls won the NAIA championship for the second consecutive year thanks to a player who hasn’t even been playing football that long.
Braden Wieking kicked three field goals, including a go-ahead 42-yarder in the fourth quarter to give Sioux Falls a 25-22 victory over Lindenwood.
Ryan Lomiller ran for 115 yards and a tying touchdown that put Sioux Falls in position to win its 29th game in a row.
Adam Lopez returned the secondhalf kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown, and his 61-yard return set up Lomiller’s 1-yard touchdown run that tied the game at 22.
The Cougars (15-0) won their 29th consecutive game, finishing the decade with a record of 120-12 and three NAIA titles. The South Dakota school also won last season and in 2006, and was runner-up in 2001 and 2007.
It was Lindenwood’s first appearance in the NAIA championship game.
Sports, Pages 33 on 12/20/2009