ANDERSON, Ind. -- The Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology football team scored six first half touchdowns and recorded its second shutout of the season to defeat Anderson University 45-0 in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference football action on Saturday afternoon.
Noah Thomas and Garrett Wight scored three touchdowns each to lead the offensive onslaught in the opening 30 minutes. Thomas hauled in eight receptions for 164 yards and three touchdowns, and Wight rushed for 105 yards on 16 carries with three scores to pace Rose-Hulman's 575-yard offensive attack.
Andrew Dion was directed the highly efficient offense with a 17-19 performance for 276 yards and three touchdowns through the air. The Fightin' Engineers surpassed the 300-yard mark in the first half and scored 21 points in each quarter of the opening 30 minutes.
Corey Vincent led the defensive effort with 1.5 sacks, and the trio of Alex Perez, Tyler Smith and Kyzer Bowen had four tackles each.  Pete Cross had a 40-yard interception return, Cody Steiner added an interception, and Perez had a fumble reovery to lead a defensive effort that allowed just 270 yards on the day.
The effort marked Rose-Hulman's second defensive shutout of the season, after a 30-0 win at Rhodes in September.
Rose-Hulman opened the scoring with a 40-yard touchdown run by Wight on its opening possession. The lead reached 14-0 on Wight's four-yard run to cap an 11-play, 76-yard drive.
Following a fumble recovery by Perez, Dion connected with Thomas on a 26-yard touchdown pass on the next play to put the Engineers ahead 21-0 after the first quarter.
The offensive continued in the second quarter, as Thomas made a diving eight-yard catch to cap a 99-yard scoring drive and make the score 28-0.
Wight scored from one yard out, and Thomas hauled in a 73-yard touchdown pass to help Rose-Hulman build a 42-0 lead at the half.
Brett Tuttle capped the scoring with a 29-yard field goal after hitting the first six extra points.
Rose-Hulman improved to 4-2 and 3-1 in HCAC play, while Anderson dropped to 3-4 and 1-3 in league games. The Fightin' Engineers host HCAC leader Mount St. Joseph next Saturday at 4 pm at Cook Stadium.
