Sept. 19, 2009 - This one was by the defense and for the defense.

After giving up a total of 73 points in the past two games, the defense of the Hillsdale College football team recorded its first shutout in nearly two years in a 23-0 win over the University of Indianapolis Saturday night at Frank “Muddy” Waters Stadium. It was the first home night game for the Chargers in three years, and the win improves the team to 3-1 overall and 2-1 in GLIAC play. Next week, Hillsdale heads to Ashland to battle it out with the nationally ranked Eagles.

It was the first shutout victory for the Chargers since Sept. 29, 2007, when it whitewashed Michigan Tech 37-0 at home. Hillsdale’s last shutout prior to that game came way back in 1996.

The Charger defense was able to come up with two interceptions, one each by David Bakker and Nick Galvan, to give the unit some difference-making plays it had been lacking the previous two weeks, when Hillsdale did not force a turnover against either of its opponents.

Galvan’s pick was particularly big, because he stopped what turned out to be the Greyhounds’ longest drive of the ballgame. He intercepted the pass at the Hillsdale four-yard-line on a play run by the Greyhounds at the Chargers’ 22-yard-line. That would represent the deepest penetration into Hillsdale territory for the Indianapolis off ense on the evening.

On the other side of the ball, the Chargers relied on a powerful running game, sparked by senior RB Vinnie Panizzi, and another accurate passing game by QB Troy Weatherhead.

Panizzi, in his third year as Hillsdale’s starting running back, rushed the ball 27 times for a career-high 188 yards and one touchdown.

He averaged seven yards per carry, and his tough running and the consistent blocking of the off ensive line, seemed to wear down the Greyhounds’ defense as the game wore on. He had a 21-yard run in the third quarter that saw him spin off of several tackles, bringing the nighttime crowd to its feet.

One possession later, Panizzi galloped into the end zone from 11 yards out to provide the final scoring of the game. He now has seven rushing touchdowns in four games this season, and his 188 yards vaulted him into third place on the Chargers’ all-time rushing list. He now has 2,662 rushing yards for his career.

Hillsdale drove the ball 58 yards in nine plays on its first possession, capped by a one-yard touchdown run by Weatherhead. He ran an option play and kept the ball running behind the right side of the offensive line to put Hillsdale in front 7-0.

Senior placekicker Mark Petro handled the scoring over the next two quarters, nailing three straight field goals from distances of
29, 32 and 36 yards to keep the points on the Hillsdale side of the scoreboard moving. In four games this season, Petro has scored 42 points, making 10-of-11 fi eld goals and 12-of-13 extra points.

Weatherhead was 19-for-30 for 136 yards. The Indianapolis secondary did a good job of taking away the deep ball, but Weatherhead completed passes to seven different receivers, and helped lead the Chargers down the field with safe, medium-length completions.

Senior A.J. Kegg led the team with six receptions for 46 yards, while junior Andre Holmes hauled in five passes for 50 yards.
But the story of the game was the Hillsdale defense. Six different players recorded tackles-for-loss, which indicates the high activity level of the entire defensive unit.

Senior Drew Berube had 2 1/2 sacks that resulted in 21 lost yards for the Greyhounds. Seniors Jordan Knudsen and Andrew Yarbrough also recorded one sack apiece, and Yarbrough had 2 1.2 tackles-for-loss in the game. He and David Bakker each had four total tackles to lead the Chargers, while Tyler Sandner and Joe Stempien each broke up a pass.

This game ended Hillsdale’s streak of four straight 37-point ballgames, dating back to the final contest of 2008. The Chargers are 17-3 in their past 20 home games, and have won back-to-back games over the Greyhounds for the first time since the meetings between the teams in 1995 and 1996.

Click on the link below for the stats from Saturday's game.

Chargers 23, Indianapolis 0