BEREA, OHIO -- Senior runningback Brandon Hedges (Oregon/ Clay) scored on runs of five, 53 and three yards as the Baldwin-Wallace College Yellow Jackets defeated Ohio Athletic Conference and Cleveland cross-town rival John Carroll University, 24-8, tonight (Saturday, September 30, 2006) in the Annual Battle for the Cuyahoga Gold Bowl Trophy and OAC game at The George Finnie Stadium in Berea.
 
With its win, the Yellow Jackets are now 3-1 overall and 2-1 in the OAC and host winless Heidelberg College next Saturday on Homecoming in Berea.  With its loss, the Blue Streaks are now 2-2 overall and 1-2 in the OAC and hosts third-ranked Capital University next Saturday at Don Shula Stadium at 7:00 p.m.  B-W's victory also gave it a 22-20-4 advantage in  the all-time series between the two schools that began in 1921.  The Yellow Jackets also increased their lead in the Cuyahoga Gold Bowl series, 10-8.
 
The Yellow Jackets scored first at the 11:52 mark of the first quarter when Hedges scored on a five-yard run. Junior placekicker Adam Wilburn (Bucyrus/ Wynford) tacked on the PAT for a 7-0 lead. Hedges touchdown run followed a quarterback sack, fumble and recovery by B-W tackle Matt Leber.  B-W increased its lead to 10-0 at the 5:21 mark of the first stanza when Wilburn booted a career-long 45-yard field goal. It was his fifth in six tries this season.
 
B-W scored its final points of the first half at the 11:15 mark when Hedges broke a JCU tackle on the first play following a Blue Streak punt and sped  53 yards to paydirt.  Wilburn's PAT kick gave the Jackets' a 17-0 lead at the intermission. 
 
B-W began the second half by increasing its lead to 24-0 with a nine-play, 70-yard drive capped off by a four-yard Hedges run.  Wilburn also had his third vstraight PAT kick.
 
John Carroll scored its points at 6:53 mark of the final quarter when freshman QB Rudy Kirbus threw a 22-yard TD pass to senior wide receiver Joseph Konrad.  Kirbus then threw to freshman WR Scottie Williams for the two-point conversion to cut the deficit to 24-8.
 
The Yellow Jackets were led offensively by Hedges who ran the ball 24 times for 157 yards and threeTD.  It was his 10th career 100-yard rushing game.  Defensively, B-W held JCU to minus 21 yards rushing in 20 attempts, had five QB sacks, intercepted two passes and recovered one fumble.
 
Blue Streaks junior QB Steve Spence completed 16 of 30 passes for 161 yards, including eight passes to Konrad for 135 yards.
 
FOR MORE B-W SPORTS INFORMATION, please contact Sports Information Director Kevin Ruple by telephone at 440-826-2327, by FAX machine at 440-826-2329 or via e-mail at kruple@bw.edu.  To contact Head Coach John Snell, please call him at 440-826-2069, FAX him at 440-826-2192 or e-mail him at jsnell@bw.edu.