Macalester vs. Minnesota-Morris statistics
Macalester's defense dominated from start to finish, holding Minnesota-Morris to just four first downs and 94 yards in total offense in a 25-0 shutout victory Friday afternoon over the Cougars at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. The Scots had no turnovers and just three penalties, and improve their record to 4-5 going into next weekend's season-finale, while the UMM Cougars drop to 2-5.
The Cougars didn't earn their second first down in the game until the fourth quarter and gained just nine yards through the air on a 4-for-14 passing performance. Macalester, meanwhile, ran for a season-best 249 yards on 5.4 per carry, and passed for another 102 yards. The Scots out-gained UMM 20-4 in first downs and held the Cougars to just 1.8 yards a snap. UMM converted just 2-of-15 third down tries. The nine passing yards allowed breaks a 30-year school record mark of 26 given up against Bethel in 1978.
“Our coaching staff is very proud of how our team played today,” said Macalester head coach
Tony Jennison. “We have a very strong team in terms of mental toughness. After two tough weeks our team remained poised and had our best week of practice all season. It was great to see their hard work throughout the week pay off.”
Brian Foster (So., Shannon, Miss.) led the Mac defensive effort with 12 tackles, including eight solo stops and a quarterback sack. He also broke up a pass.
Josh Boomgaarden (Jr., Eden Prairie, Minn.) made eight tackles and
Ed Fitzpatrick (Sr., Honolulu, Hi. / Iolani) was in on seven stops.
Nate Juergens (So., St. Paul, Minn. / Como Park) opened the scoring with a 41-yard field goal early in the second quarter and closed out the scoring with a 24-yarder early in the fourth. The Scots also received a pair of touchdown runs from
Adam Gyrion (So., Chicago, Ill. / St. Laurence) and a 33-yard TD reception by
Jon Elliott (So. El Paso, Tex. / Andress).
The Scots ran for 5.4 yards per carry. In addition to getting two touchdowns and 55 yards from Gyrion, the team received 21 carries for 111 yards from
T. Joe Loiselle (Fy., Chippewa Falls, Wis.) and another 79 yards on 10 carries from quarterback
Trevor Miehe (So., Holmen, Wis.), who also hit Elliott for the 33-yard score. Loiselle heads into next week's contest with 933 yards in rushing yardage.
UM-Morris received 98 yards on the ground from Robert Koranda, but other than that, netted -4 yards on the day. Andrew Shay registered 16 tackles to lead the defense.
Macalester makes the short trip up Snelling Ave. next Saturday (Nov. 8) as the Scots and Hamline meet on the football field for the 109th time in the battle for the Paint Bucket Trophy. The Scots are looking to close out the campaign with a win, which would put them at .500 for the season.
