VALPARAISO, Ind. (AP) – Mike Ratelle returned a kickoff for a touchdown, helping Drake beat winless Valparaiso 35-21 on Saturday afternoon. Ratelle’s 88-yard kickoff return, followed by a kick by Cam Bohnert, gave Drake (5-2, 4-0, Pioneer League) its first touchdown of the day. Adding to the score, Mike Piatkowski threw for one touchdown – a 10-yard pass to T.J. James – and 1 yard for another. Piatkowski was 22 of 36 for 327 yards. Trey Morse also scored on a 29-yard run.  Trey Morse also scored on a 29-yard run for the Bulldogs.

For the Crusaders, Eric Slenk had two touchdowns – a 24-yard catch from Ben Lehman in the first quarter and a 23-yard catch from Quinn Schafer in the fourth. Lehman was 11 of 26 for 100 yards and Schafer was 6 of 8 for 78 yards.   Ryan Leher ran 3 yards for a Valparaiso (0-6, 0-3 Pioneer League) touchdown.