MEADVILLE — It’s hard to believe that one play on the first drive of the game would completely alter Saturday’s North Coast Athletic Conference football contest between Allegheny and Wittenberg at Frank B. Fuhrer Field.

The Gators were moving the ball quite well on their first possession. They already accomplished three first downs without even needing a third down.

Then, what started a downhill spiral struck when Allegheny quarterback Mike Person was intercepted by Jon Daniels, who returned the ball to midfield.

Seven plays later, the Tigers (6-1, 3-1 NCAC) were in the end zone and never looked back during an impressive 35-6 victory that halted the Gators’ undefeated conference record.

“I thought the first interception was a crusher,” Allegheny head coach Mark Matlak said. “We had them on their heels a little bit. We were running the ball pretty well and all that good stuff. ... It was a poor decision. It turned the momentum of the game.”

The Gators had won three of their previous five home games against Wittenberg entering Saturday’s game. Saturday’s 29-point difference served as the Tigers’ largest ever margin of victory at Allegheny.

Wittenberg head coach Joe Fincham still remembers Allegheny’s Division III national championship season in 1990 and doesn’t take any wins in Meadville for granted. The homestanding Gators beat the Tigers 38-0 that season.

“Our current players don’t necessarily have appreciation for this (win),” Fincham said. “I was an assistant when that ’90 team drilled us up here. We’ve never played like this up here, so we’re pleased with the outcome.”

The Gators (4-3, 3-1) had their chances, but they couldn’t ever finish a drive until late in the fourth quarter once the game was already out of hand.

Allegheny’s offensive struggles this season have been well documented. The team has relied on a dominant defense while scoring 13.5 points per game. The Gators have lost a number of running backs to injury and Person and Joe Dawida have split snaps under center this year.

Those offensive troubles led to conservative play calling by Matlak on Saturday. Allegheny twice encountered fourth-and-inches around midfield during the first half and Matlak decided to punt both times in order to pin Wittenberg’s high-powered offense deep in its own territory.

“It’s a territory game for me,” Matlak said. “There’s a time and a place to go for it. It wasn’t the time or the place. I wasn’t going to decide the game and put our defense in a bad field position. If you can’t make three downs and 10 yards, what’s all of sudden going to make me think that we’re going to gain a yard.”

Down 7-0 and on its second drive, Allegheny reached Wittenberg’s 46-yard line and was faced with a fourth and about two feet. Ryan Schroth’s well-placed 42-yard punt made the Tigers start at their own 4-yard line, but they responded with a nine-play, 96-yard touchdown drive. On third-and-18, junior quarterback Reed Florence hooked up with Brendon Cunningham for a 31-yard touchdown that put Wittenberg up 14-0.

Three drives later, the Gators were at Wittenberg’s 44-yard line when they once again punted on fourth and less than a yard. On cue, Schroth’s punt went out of bounds at the 1-yard line, but Wittenberg worked its way out of the poor field position and led 14-0 at halftime.

“My confidence level right now is not that high,” Matlak said about his offense. “It would be probably a huge gamble if we went for it on those fourth downs. So I chose to go the conservative route, kick it and pin them down.”

The Tigers turned things up a notch in the third quarter, scoring a touchdown on their first three possesions. They found the end zone on 79-, 43- and six-yard drives.

Wittenberg’s final score followed a blocked punt that led to Schroth being carted off the field with what Matlak said was a season-ending knee injury.

The Tigers amassed 542 yards in the game, led by Florence. Florence was the ultimate playmaker on Saturday, completing 18-of-29 passes for 263 yards with one touchdown and zero interceptions. He also ran for a game-high 99 yards and a score on 12 carries, including a 39-yard jaunt on third-and-six in which he avoided a safety during an important second quarter possession.

“He’s a good athlete,” Fincham said. “He provides a lot of leadership to our football team and he made a lot of plays today.”

Allegheny totaled 310 yards but couldn’t reach the red zone until its final drive. Dawida replaced Person at quarterback late in the game and led the Gators to their only touchdown. He connected with Ben Tarcson for a six-yard score after a seven-play, 88-yard drive that featured a 24-yard carry by Joel DeFelice.

DeFelice gained a team-best 87 yards on eight totes.

The Gators are still just a game out of first place in the NCAC, but Matlak didn’t take much solace in that fact.

“It doesn’t feel too good right now,” Matlak said. “I thought that it was a long day at the office. I feel badly for the boys. ... Today, coaching and the execution part weren’t good enough.”

Another pivotal game on Allegheny’s schedule is up next. The Gators visit Kenyon next Saturday at 1 p.m. Kenyon (4-3, 3-1) edged DePauw 21-19 on Saturday.