NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The Macalester College football team outgained St. Olaf College, 433-296 in total offense but ultimately lost the MIAC game, 35-27 Saturday afternoon at Klein Field at Manitou. The result gives the Scots a 3-5 record overall and a 2-5 mark in the conference. The Oles improve to 3-5, 3-4 MIAC.
The two teams came out dressed for the day, with Macalester wearing orange and St. Olaf in all black for Halloween. On the first possession of the game, senior linebacker
Jason Weaver (Roselle Park, N.J./Pingry) intercepted Oles' quarterback Luke Crosby at the Macalester 38-yard line. But neither team scored in the first quarter. On their second drive of the second half, the Scots moved the ball 72 yards on five plays that included a 34-yard pass from junior quarterback
Jack Scully (Menlo Park, Calif./Sacred Heart Prep) to senior receiver
Sennet Siodlarz (New Berlin, Wis./Eisenhower), and ended with a 13-yard touchdown pass from junior receiver
Jackson Janes (New York City, N.Y./Brooklyn Tech) to senior tight end
William Watson (Mendota Heights, Minn./Two Rivers) for a 7-0 lead.
The Oles answered on their next possession that saw running back Landon Dillon gain all 63 yards on five carries to tie the score at 7-7. Then a 57-yard touchdown pass to Taevin Pribyl put St. Olaf on top, 14-7. Near the end of the quarter, Macalester drove 75 yards on eight plays, culminating in a 10-yard touchdown pass from Scully to Janes. The extra point was missed, leaving the score at 14-13. On the ensuing kickoff, Alec Mahoney returned it 86 yards for a touchdown with 18 seconds left in the half for a 21-13 advantage.
After St. Olaf added a touchdown early in the third quarter to push the lead to 15, 28-13. But another 75-yard drive by the Scots made it a one-possession game again, 28-20 with 4:45 left in the third quarter. Scully completed passes to first year receiver
Carter Hayden (Fort Wayne, Ind./Coral Springs Charter) for 32 yards, Janes for 16 yards, sophomore running back
David Frechette (Hanover, N.H./Hanover) for 17 yards, and Hayden again for a 10-yard touchdown in the drive.
On the first possession of the fourth quarter, Crosby completed a six-play, 61-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to take a 35-20 lead. Again the Scots responded, with Frechette returning the kickoff 53 yards to spark a 36-yard scoring drive. Scully connected with Janes for a 12-yard touchdown to pull Macalester to within eight, 35-27 with 9:05 remaining.
After the Scots' defense forced a punt on the next possession, the offense moved the ball into Ole territory. A 39-yard pass from Scully to Siodlarz put the ball at the St. Olaf 27. But two plays later, Scully was intercepted by Mahoney to end the drive. The Oles gained a first down and ran out the clock to clinch the win.
Macalester gained 381 yards passing and recorded 22 first downs compared to 13 for St. Olaf. Scully was 31-of-45 for a career-high 368 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. Janes caught 12 passes for 110 yards and two touchdowns, all career highs, while Hayden had his best day as a Scot with eight receptions for 111 yards and a touchdown. Siodlarz finished with four catches for a career-high 85 yards. On defense, junior linebacker
Dylan Jeppe (Glencoe, Ill./New Trier) had nine tackles and sophomore defensive back
Addison Stirling (Los Angeles, Calif./Brentwood) made eight tackles. Sophomore linebacker
Asher Niemi (Meridian, Idaho/Rocky Mountain) registered 2.0 tackles-for-loss and a sack.
Dillon gained 122 yards on 25 carries, while Crosby threw for 103 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
Macalester heads to Moorhead, Minn., next Saturday, Nov. 7 for a MIAC game against Concordia College. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.
