ST. PAUL, Minn. – For the second year in a row, the Macalester College football team won the battle for the Paint Bucket by defeating Hamline University, 33-20 in a MIAC Skyline Division game Saturday afternoon at Klas Field.  The Scots end a five-game losing streak with the win to improve to 3-5 overall and 1-3 in the division. The Pipers fall to 2-6, 0-3 Skyline.

Macalester has won four of the last five meetings with Hamline for the Paint Bucket and seven of the past 11.

After a scoreless first quarter, Macalester put together a 17-play, 86-yard drive that ended with an 8-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Michael Nadeau (Garden Grove, Calif./La Quinta to junior receiver Nick Bice (Fort Dodge, Iowa/Fort Dodge). Nadeau hit Bice for a successful two-point conversion to give the Scots the lead, 8-0. Hamline responded on the next possession, scoring on Dorrayn Tapplin's 23-yard reception. The Pipers' two-point conversion was no good, making the score 8-6 with 2:30 remaining in the half.

Macalester punted on its next possession, and the Pipers moved the ball to midfield with 32 seconds left. On 3rd-and-2, senior defensive back Troy Barksdale (Bolton, Mass./Nashoba Regional) stepped in front of the receiver, intercepted the pass and returned it 60 yards for a touchdown. Nadeau converted the two-point conversion with a pass to senior receiver Rex Desso (Evergreen, Colo./Lakewood) to make the halftime score 16-6 Macalester. Both teams gained 149 yards of total offense and had nine first downs each in the first half.

On the first possession of the second half, sophomore defensive back Cameron Latvis (West St. Paul, Minn./Two Rivers) grabbed his second interception in as many games to give the Scots the ball at the Macalester 46-yard line. After a pair of 5-yard completions to Desso and Bice and an 8-yard run by first year running back Vasco Sierra (Chicago, Ill./DePaul College Prep), Nadeau connected with Desso for a 30-yard reception to put the ball on the Hamline 6-yard-line. Three incompletions made it 4th-and-goal, then Nadeau found junior receiver Nathan Wu (Walnut Creek, Calif./Northgate) for the touchdown and a 23-6 lead.

The defense came up big again on the Piper's next possession, as junior linebacker Noah Bresson (Homosassa, Fla./Crystal River) recovered a fumble at the Hamline 48. The Scots' ensuing drive stalled at the 10-yard-line, and junior kicker Shomrik Mondal (Saratoga, Calif./The Harker School) made a 27-yard field goal for a 26-6 advantage. The Macalester defense forced Hamline to punt, giving the Scots the ball at the Hamline 46. Junior running back Logan Pampel (Johnson Creek, Wis./Lakeside Lutheran School) capped the scoring drive with a 2-yard touchdown run for a 33-6 Macalester lead.

Hamline scored a pair of touchdowns in the fourth quarter, with Malik Wynn scoring on a 33-yard reception and Charlie Wilson scoring on a 9-yard catch to make the final score 33-20.

Nadeau was 31-of-51 for 273 yards and two touchdowns, while Desso caught 13 passes for 133 yards. Wu and senior receiver Ty Bruckner (Bel Aire, Kan./Wichita North) each caught five passes. Pampel ran 17 times for 57 yards and a touchdown. On defense, sophomore defensive lineman Max Menache (Beverly Hills, Calif./Beverly Hills) had six tackles, including 2.0 tackles-for-loss, to lead the Scots. Nick Grande threw for 150 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions for Hamline.

Next week Macalester hosts St. Scholastica in the final regular-season game of the season. The MIAC cross-divisional game starts at 1:00 p.m. at Macalester Stadium. The Scots will honor their seniors before the game.

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