ALLIANCE — Carnegie Mellon had only given up more than 100 yards rushing in one game this season.

Make that two after Mount Union ran for 143 yards and three touchdowns in a 24-19 victory in an NCAA Division III playoff game Saturday in front of 2,486 fans at Kehres Stadium.

Tyler Echeverry ran for 112 yards and two touchdowns and quarterback T.J. DeShields had another score to pave the way.

Mount Union (12-0) advances the national quarterfinals at Salisbury, Md. (12-0) on Saturday. Kickoff will be at noon at Sea Gull Stadium.

DeShields, a West Branch High School graduate, complete 23 of 30 passes for 218 yards in his third straight start.

His 3-yard run capped the Purple Raiders opening drive for a 7-0 lead with 8:24 left in the first quarter.

The Tartans rallied for a 13-7 lead before the Purple Raiders went up for good on Echeverry’s 13-yard run that made it 14-13 with 4:42 to play in the second quarter. It came after a 48-yard kickoff return by Darnell Williams.

Senior safety Brandon Yanssens, a Crestview High School graduate, was sidelined for targeting with 6:15 left in the first quarter. He returned to the lineup after a halftime review showed there was no targeting.

Yanssens’ return sparked the Purple Raiders defense in the second half.

Carnegie Mellon quarterback Ben Mills finished 17-of-29 for 187 yards and two touchdowns — but he was 6-of-13 for 83 yards in the second half.

Yanssens collected Yanssens five tackles, including two solos

Freshman cornerback Zack Liebler from Massillon had a career-high nine tackles, with eight solos and three pass breakups

Both teams scored in the second half as Mount Union led 24-19.

The closes the Tartans got in the final 14 minutes was to the Mount Union 46-yard line. The Tartans threw three incompletions and Rossy Moore sacked Mills on fourth down with 1:20 remaining.

Each team had 67 offensive plays with Mount Union rolling up 361 yards to Carnegie Mellon’s 325.

Game notes

¯ West Branch High School graduates Mitch Coffee and Greg Rockwell are offensive linemen for Mount Union and block on extra points.

¯ Echeverry leads NCAA Division III in rushing touchdowns (24) and is sixth in rushing yards (1,460).

¯ So far this season, DeShields has completed 72 of 108 passes (67%) for 831 yards and five touchdowns along with four rushing touchdowns.

¯ Mount Union has won at least 12 games in 28 of the last 29 seasons.

¯ The Tartans won five games in a row since a 17-10 loss at Grove City (Pa.) on Oct. 12. They held opponents to a total of 98 yards rushing in those five wins.

¯ It marks the third straight season Carnegie Mellon posted double-digit victories.

¯ Mount Union and Salisbury played once before with the Purple Raiders winning 51-0 in a 2022 playoff opener in Alliance.