Late touchdown and clutch sacks give Defiance huge victory in conference-opener at Hanover

HANOVER, Ind. – The Defiance Yellow Jackets recorded a go-ahead touchdown in the final minute and made a last-second stand on defense to defeat the Hanover Panthers, 27-21, at Alumni Stadium on Saturday.

The Yellow Jackets (2-2, 1-0 HCAC) climbed back to .500 with the win and snapped a seven-year losing streak against the Panthers (3-1, 0-1 HCAC) to give Hanover their first loss of 2023.

DC quarterback Jordan Ambrose tossed his lone touchdown of the contest to Jalen Warren with 51 seconds on the clock. Hanover completed four passes to get within scoring range, but could not overcome a holding penalty and Richard Pope IV's sack on the last play of the game to seal the win.

Tied 21-21 after three quarters, Defiance's defense stood strong when it mattered most after Hanover extended their one-point halftime lead with a touchdown to start the second half. The Jackets forced the Panthers to punt on their next three drives in the second half. Halfway through the fourth, the Panthers marched down to DC's 11 yard line threatening to take the lead. On a second down play, Richard Pope IV broke through the Hanover line and sacked quarterback Kolton Richards to set up third and long. Richards threw a low incompletion on the next play, then kicker Pedro Paixao missed a potential go-ahead 29-yard field goal to hand the Jackets the football with 4:45 left in the game.

Defiance's eventual game-winning drive was aided by a costly Hanover penalty followed by a big pass play to flip the field. Defiance was backed up on their own three yard line after a pair of penalties and faced a first-and-27 but created some space and on a 14-yard carry by Tyshaun Freeman. Hanover gifted DC a fresh set of downs with a facemask penalty on the next play and Ambrose made the Panthers pay when he linked up with Jacob Deisler for a 38-yard pass down the right sideline. Working from Hanover's 27 yard line, Ambrose fired a long pass to Warren in the end zone near the right sideline for the go-ahead score. 

After Zeke Sanchez missed the extra point, the door was still open for Hanover down by six. On an incomplete pass in the end zone, Hanover was caught for holding to back them up to DC's 16-yard line with two ticks on the clock. Pope ripped through his block to record his third sack of the game.

DC started the game with the football and drove down to get three points off the opening drive, which was kept alive thanks to a 21-yard pass over the middle from Ambrose to Rome on fourth down. After three more plays, Defiance was in range Zeke Sanchez to knock through his first field goal of the season from 33 yards away. 

The Jackets added a second field goal from Sanchez to take a 6-0 lead after Hanover punted the ball back to Defiance. The drive started from their own 13 but a deep pass over the middle caught by Warren went for 49 yards to get Defiance inside the 10-yard line.

Hanover punted on their first three possessions and was limited to 28 yards of offense in the first quarter but put together a pair of touchdown drives in the second quarter. The first was a seven-play drive that started at midfield and ended on an 11-yard touchdown by tailback Don Dunning. Dunning muscled his way through a pair of defenders on his way across the goal line as the Panthers went ahead 7-6 following the extra point. Three plays after picking off Ambrose on DC's next drive, Hanover extended their lead with a 30-yard touchdown pass by Kolton Richards as he found Jalen Peck in the back of the end zone.

Defiance responded with a three-and-out on offense but Daniel Budwah got the ball back for the Yellow Jackets when he made a leaping interception on a long pass down the sideline by Richards. With the ball on their own 22 with 3:16 left in the first half, Defiance charged down the field on two long completions by Ambrose. The senior signal caller found Rome for 20 yards to get across midfield followed by a 42-yard, tumbling catch by Warren just shy of the goal line. Defiance turned to running back Tyshaun Freeman on third down from the two when the senior plunged in for a touchdown behind the left side of the line with 31 seconds left before halftime. The Jackets opted for the extra point to go into halftime down by one.

Hanover took a 21-13 lead by converting the opening drive of the second half into a touchdown when Dunning rumbled for a 35-yard score, his second of the day. The pendulum swung back to Defiance at the 5:40 mark of the third when the Jackets recovered a muffed punt inside Hanover's 20. Three plays and a Hanover facemask later, Freeman found the end zone for the second time on a three-yard dive. DC tied the game at 21-21 when Ambrose exercised the quarterback-sneak on the two-point conversion from one yard out after an unsportsmanlike penalty by Hanover set up the Jackets on the doorstep.

The win for Defiance is the first over Hanover since the 2015 season to give the Jackets a 1-0 conference record for the first time since 2010, which was a 24-10 win at Hanover. 

Defiance narrowly outgained Hanover 323 to 311. Both squads committed nine penalties and Defiance won the turnover battle 2-1. Ambrose passed for 228 yards with one interception and a touchdown while completing 12 out of 25 attempts. Jalen Warren was his top target with five grabs for 120 yards. Freeman's two touchdown runs were highlighted by 91 yards on the ground to lead Defiance in rushing. In addition to an interception, Budwah matched Jaylin Redd with seven tackles to lead the squad on defense. Pope IV notched six total tackles with three sacks.

The Yellow Jackets return home next Saturday after three straight road games for Defiance College's homecoming football game. DC welcomes defending HCAC champion Mount St. Joseph with kickoff at Justin F. Coressel Stadium scheduled for 1:30 p.m.

-JACKETS-