Dillon, Bonilla Honored by Heartland Conference

GREENWOOD, Ind. -- Luke Dillon hauled in 17 catches for 258 yards and Alex Bonilla sent three kicks through the uprights on Saturday, as Defiance topped Otterbein by a 16-14 score. Each player set or tied a DC school record and was named as a Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Week.

Dillon was named as the HCAC Offensive Player of the Week after he broke the Defiance College and Heartland Conference single-game record with 253 receiving yards and tied the school and conference marks with 17 receptions in the victory.

After waiting through a three-hour delay to start the game, Dillon made his presence felt immediately. On the Yellow Jackets first drive of the game, the Temperance, Mich., native hauled in three catches for 40 yards. Dillon then set up the lone Defiance touchdown of the night on the very next drive when he pulled down a 39-yard strike at the two-yard line. DC would punch it in on the next play to cap the two-play drive and take the early 7-0 lead.

Dillon trumped the Otterbein secondary all night long, totaling three-or-more catches and at least 45 yards in all four quarters. The senior standout came up large in the fourth quarter as well, moving the chains and allowing DC to take precious minutes off the clock, with six receptions for 65 yards.

Dillon is off to a sizzling start in 2007, leading Defiance with 28 catches for 367 yards and tops the HCAC in receptions and receiving yards per game, while ranking second in all-purpose yardage.

Bonilla garnered HCAC Special Teams Player-of-the-Week honors after he connected on his first three field goal attempts in a Defiance College uniform on Saturday, sending boots of 26 and 30 yards through the uprights before hitting the eventual game-winning kick from 36 yards out. Bonillas string of field goals extended DCs lead from 7-0 out to 16-0 over the course of the second and third quarters and provided the cushion for the eventual 16-14 victory.

The three makes also tied a Defiance College single-game record for most successful field goals in a game.

The Player-of-the-Week honors were the first two of the season for the Yellow Jackets, after claiming seven such accolades one year ago.

Defiance (1-1) will play at Tri-State on Saturday at 1:00 pm. The Jackets will then have an off week before returning home to host Manchester on September 29.