ST. PAUL, Minn. – Down 14-0, the Macalester College football team scored 24 unanswered points to beat the College of St. Scholastica, 24-14 in a MIAC game Saturday night under the lights at John Leaney Field at Macalester Stadium. The Scots improve to 2-1 overall and 1-1 in the conference, while the Saints fall to 0-3, 0-2 MIAC.
On Macalester's first possession, the Scots moved the ball down to the St. Scholastica 2-yard line. With 4th-and-goal from the 2, Macalester lost four yards, turning the ball over on the 6-yard line. The Saints took advantage immediately, as Eddie Dossantos connected with Jeremiah Jackson on a 94-yard touchdown pass on their first play of the drive.
Early in the second quarter, Dossantos threw another long pass, this time to Brayden Dent for 50 yards. Three plays later, Blake Fox scored on a 31-yard run to give St. Scholastica a 14-0 advantage. The Saints weren't done, as Dossantos moved his team deep into Macalester territory. On 3rd-and-11 from the 16-yard line, Dossantos was intercepted at the 1-yard line by sophomore defensive back
Niko Zacharias (Seattle, Wash./Shorewood). Junior quarterback
Jack Scully (Menlo Park, Calif./Sacred Heart Prep) opened the drive with an 18-yard pass to junior receiver
Paxton Boyd (Newton, Mass./Newton South), and the Scots didn't look back. The 12-play, 99-yard drive ended with sophomore receiver
Kelly Storms (San Anselmo, Calif./Marin Catholic) catching a 3-yard touchdown pass from Scully to make the score 14-7.
Macalester started the second half with the ball and drove to the Saints' 14-yard line on six consecutive running plays, plus two CSS penalties. Scully threw back-to-back passes to Boyd, including a 4-yard touchdown pass, to tie the score at 14-14. On their next possession, the Saints moved the ball to the Scots' 12-yard line, where they kicked a 29-yard field goal. But a holding penalty pushed the ball back to the 22, and sophomore linebacker
Asher Niemi (Meridian, Idaho/Rocky Mountain) blocked the 39-yard attempt.
In the fourth quarter, the Scots forced a punt and took over at their own 44-yard line. Sophomore running back
Brennan Litchford (Milwaukee, Wis./Ronald Reagan) rushed twice for 23 yards and Scully ran the ball 11 yards to the Saints' 22-yard line. A penalty moved the ball back to the 42-yard line, with Scully connecting with Boyd for 22 yards to the 20. On the next play, Scully threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Boyd for Macalester's first lead of the game, 21-14.
St. Scholastica responded by driving the ball down to the Scots' 7-yard line. On 4th-and-1, Dossantos fumbled the snap and was tackled at the 17-yard line, turning the ball over on downs. Macalester went 75 yards on 11 plays, culminating in a 25-yard field goal by sophomore
Andrew Wetherill (Langhorne, Pa./The Hun School of Princeton) for a 24-14 advantage. The Saints' final drive stalled in Macalester territory, with Niemi ending the game with a sack.
The Scots rushed for 202 yards and threw for 237, while St. Scholastica gained 335 yards passing and 66 yards on the ground. Scully threw for 237 yards and three touchdowns, with Boyd catching 10 passes for 160 yards and two scores. Storms had seven receptions for 52 yards and a touchdown. Sophomore running back
David Frechette (Hanover, N.H./Hanover) ran 19 times for 94 yards, with Litchford running for 71 yards on 10 carries. Defensively, sophomore defensive lineman
Matt Hernandez (Phoenix, Ariz./Brophy College Preparatory) made seven tackles, including two tackles-for-loss and a sack. Niemi finished with three sacks and two blocked kicks to go with six tackles.
Dossantos passed for 284 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Jackson caught four passes for 157 yards and a touchdown.
Macalester heads up Snelling Avenue to face Hamline University for the Paint Bucket next Saturday, Oct. 3. Game time is set for 1:00 p.m. at Klas Stadium.
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