The Braves were defeated 30-13 by nationally ranked Kansas Wesleyan University on Saturday afternoon at AdventHealth Field. OU finished the game with 235 yards of offense, 165 yards passing and 70 yards rushing. Kansas Wesleyan had 158 yards passing and 319 yard rushing for a total of 477 yards of offense.

Through eight games, the OU offense is averaging 309.5 yards per game. The Braves are averaging 112.3 yards rushing and 197.3 yards passing per game. The Ottawa offense is scoring 17.1 points per game. Opponents are scoring 30.6 points and averaging 380.3 yards of offense per game. They are averaging 243.6 yards rushing per game and 136.6 yards passing per game.

Saturday's game is the 57th meeting between the two teams. Ottawa leads the series, 30-26 and is 2-3 in its last five meetings against the Warriors. OU lost the game last year to Sterling on the road, 21-6 on Nov. 6. Ottawa won the last game at AdventHealth Field on March 13, 2021, 44-41. The first meeting between the two teams took place on Nov. 10, 1922 in Ottawa. Sterling won the game 13-3. The Braves are 17-9 against Sterling in Ottawa.

Jared Daniels leads the Braves in rushing with 408 yards. He has scored two rushing touchdowns and is averaging 5.4 yards per carry. Billy Maples is OU's leader in passing. He is 102-for-196 through the air for 1,157 yards and has thrown seven touchdowns. He is completing 52 percent of his passes. Jermaine Ziegler is OU's leader in receptions with 27. He is averaging 8.7 yards per reception and 29.3 receiving yards per game. AJ Hemphill leads OU in tackles with 96. He has four pass break ups, two recovered fumbles, and one forced fumble. Jensen Riffel is seconds on the team in tackles with 56. He has one recovered fumble.

Ottawa is ranked 33rd in the NAIA in Comp-Att-Int (153-290-10), 52nd in passing yards per game (197.3), 44th in passing first downs (75), 40th in penalty first downs (15), 23rd in fourth down conversions (12-28), 49th in fourth down percentage (.430), 43rd in kick returns (No.-Yards) (30-577), 46th in kick return average (19.2), 27th in punt return average (11), 20th in fumbles recovered (9), sixth in defensive TDs (3), 29th in tackles (589), 24th in penalties (47), and 17th in penalty yards (394).

Sterling College is 1-7 overall and 1-7 in the KCAC. The Warriors are on a three game losing streak with losses to Friends University (42-7) on Oct. 15, Bethel College (51-7) on Oct. 22 and Southwestern College (31-14) on Oct. 29.

The Warriors victory came against Bethany College on Oct. 8 in Simsor Stadium, 40-34 in double overtime. BC trailed 27-20 with 11:39 to go in the fourth quarter after a Warrior 47 yard field goal by Luis Franco. Bethany tied the game with 6:42 left in regulation on a one yard touchdown run by Nick Truelove.

Through eight games, Sterling's offense is averaging 222.9 yards per game (61.4 rushing and 161.5 passing). The Warriors scored 14.1 points per game. Opponents are averaging 384.8 yards per game, 189.8 on the ground and 195 through the air. They are scoring 38.6 points per game.

Sterling is ranked 15th in the NAIA in penalty first downs (19), 36th in fourth down conversions (10-24), 15th in kick returns (No.-Yards) (42-761), first in PAT % (1.00), 54th in punts (No.-Yards) (41-1450), 30th in fumbles-lost (14-7), 49th in fumbles recovered (6), 43rd in interception return average (13.4), 34th in tackles (578), 51st in penalties (56), 42nd in penalty yards (499) and 37th in time of possession (31:34).

Sterling has played two quarterbacks this season. Daniel Jackson is 97-190 through the air for 997 yards. He has throwing six touchdown passes and 14 interceptions. Rocklin Baptista is has thrown for 204 yards (29-60). He has two touchdown passes and five interceptions. Daniel Doriscar leads the team in rushing with 265 yards. He is averaging 4.9 yards per carry and has scored one touchdown. TC Smith is SC's leading receiver with 28 receptions. He has scored one touchdown. David Timmons leads the team in receiving yards with 359. He has scored three touchdowns. Hunter Pullen is the team's leader in tackles with 54. He has one sack, 4.5 tackles for loss, and two pass break ups. Devon Rodgers is second on the team in tackles with 45. He has two interceptions and four pass break ups.

In the loss to Southwestern last Saturday, the Moundbuilders had a 14-0 lead over Sterling at the half. Southwestern increased its lead to 21-0 with a touchdown at the 8:39 mark in the third quarter. Sterling scored its first touchdown with 7:31 to go in the third quarter to get within 21-7. Southwestern scored the next 10 points to take a 31-7 lead with 13:51 to go in the fourth quarter. Sterling scored its final touchdown of the game with 37 seconds left in game and Southwestern took the 31-14 victory.

Sterling's last drive of the game against the Moundbuilders was 12 plays and took 6:39.