Football fights heavy rain, Roma Grizzlies to post 31-0 victory on fourth international trip

May 15, 2016

By Tim Glon

SETTEBAGNI, Italy -- Ohio Northern fought heavy rains and hail and the host Roma Grizzlies to post a 31-0 victory in a controlled scrimmage Sunday afternoon at the Salaria Sport Village on the banks of the River Tiber.

Will Freed threw for 147 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score to lead the Polar Bear offense.

A strong thunderstorm with torrential rains and pea-sized hail flooded the stadium an hour prior to kickoff, which delayed the start of the game nearly 20 minutes.

The two teams played a controlled scrimmage, with each team getting 10 offensive plays at a time. The field was also a bit shorter, measuring just 90 yards.

There was also no tackling as the Grizzlies are in the middle of their season and have a league game this upcoming weekend. The was no special teams play of any kind until an extra point on the final play of the game.

The rains held off during pregame warmups, but began again in earnest early in the first series and turned into a steady downpour throughout the remainder of the game.

"There are many reasons that we take advantage of the opportunity to travel internationally every three years," ONU head coach Dean Paul. "As a program, we relish the ability we have to travel the world and promote the game of football. We had a wonderful day today with other people that have a true passion for the game."

Northern drove inside the Roma 10-yard line on its first series, but was not able to score.

On its second series, ONU scored on consecutive plays as Freed completed a 5-yard TD pass to Lucas Huber and a 60-yard TD pass over the top to Ethan Edwards to put ONU ahead 12-0.

On its third possession, the Polar Bears scored on a 33-yard pass from Matt Laubscher to Bert Marks and a 12-yard keeper by Freed to go up 24-0.

ONU then wrapped up the game on its final series, marching 60 yards in 14 plays and scoring on a 7-yard run by Caleb Saalfield.

Andrew DiMario nailed the only extra point of the game to end the contest at 31-0.

The Polar Bears out-gained the Grizzlies 387-29 in total offense.

Will Poffenberger led the ONU ground game with 72 yards rushing on 15 carries and Allen Boss had five tackles to lead the Northern defense.

Taking advantage of NCAA rules that allow D-III colleges to travel every three years, the Polar Bears have experienced the cultural sights of Greece and Italy the past six days, having previously visited Ireland in 2013, Italy in 2010 and Germany in 2007.

All of the trips were part of the Global Football annual spring tours schedule. The group returns home on Tuesday, May 17 after spending Monday touring ancient Rome.