#12 SAINT XAVIER 24, #19 ST. FRANCIS (ILL.) 21
Two second-half touchdowns closed the deficit to a one-possession game, but No. 19 St. Francis (Ill.) came up just short in their comeback attempt, as No. 12 Saint Xavier claimed the Midwest League title with a 24-21 victory.
The Saints (7-3, 6-1 Midwest) opened with a touchdown on their first possession, with Sam Tumilty finding James Williams for the 20-yard TD pass. The Cougars (9-2,7-0 Midwest) responded later in the first quarter, with Stuart Ross driving the offense 86 yards and finishing with a one-yard game-tying TD.
Late in the first half and working with a short field, Saint Xavier took the lead on a 27-yard TD pass from Kyle Quinn to Mason Gray. The home team extended their lead in the third quarter, with a 54-yard TD pass from Ross to Justin Pringle, followed by a 28-yard Peyton Benes field goal for the 24-7 advantage.
St. Francis bounced back with their next possession, driving 83 yards for Tumilty to find Liam Eldridge for a 20-yard TD pass. Midway through the fourth quarter, Tumilty would bring his team to within a field goal with a 15-play, 80-yard drive resulting in a two-yard TD run for the Saints quarterback.
Saint Xavier would burn just over three minutes off the clock, but their drive would stall, giving St. Francis the ball inside their own 10-yard line after a 51-yard punt from Joe Polselli. The Saints would pick up a pair of first downs on their final drive, but an incomplete pass on 4th-and-11 would secure the league title for the Cougars.
Ross finished with 192 yards on 13-of-20 passing and a TD, while Pringle recorded a game-high eight receptions and 133 yards in the win. Tumilty led the Saints with 126 passing and 101 rushing yards, as Eldridge tallied 91 yards and a TD on seven catches.
Joey Markasovic led the Saint Xavier defense with 11 tackles, while Jalen Cooper’s 10 tackles and two tackles for loss led the Saints.
#5 INDIANA WESLEYAN 79, MADONNA 7
With nearly 600 yards of total offense, and four takeaways from the defense, No. 5 Indiana Wesleyan claimed their first-ever MSFA title in dominant fashion, defeating Madonna 79-7 to claim the Mideast League crown.
Xander Stokes threw for 218 yards and four TDs, while the rushing attack found the end zone six times for the Wildcats (9-1, 7-0 Mideast). Two rushers surpassed 100 yards, with Jameson Chesser collecting 159 yards and two TDs, and Dederrian Williams going for 122 yards and three scores.
The Crusaders (0-11, 0-7 Mideast) found the end zone late in the fourth quarter, when Assane Ka drove the offense 55 yards capped by a two-yard TD pass to D’vonta Garrett.
Defensively, Indiana Wesleyan recorded seven sacks on the day, and were led by Aaron Harris and Clayton Mosher, finishing with seven tackles apiece. Jakel Davis and Zach Blumer made a game-high nine tackles to lead the Madonna defense.
#7 MARIAN 45, LAWRENCE TECH 14
A 28-point first quarter gave No. 7 Marian more than enough to handle their opponents in the regular season finale, as the Knights secured an NAIA Football Championship Series berth with a 45-14 road win over Lawrence Tech.
Quarterback Zach Bundalo threw three TDs in the opening quarter, taking advantage of a strip-sack from Jayshawn Underwood and Tyler Bukur on the Blue Devils’ second drive of the game. Christian Hunter made it a 28-point lead with an 11-yard TD run in the closing seconds of the first period.
Tyler Kulka would throw for 304 yards and two TDs for Lawrence Tech (3-7, 2-5 Mideast), but the home team wouldn’t get on the scoreboard until the final moments of the first half, as the Knights (8-1, 6-1 Mideast) controlled the game throughout.
Baron Huebler rushed 15 times for 106 yards and a TD to lead the Marian rushing attack, while Ben Stevens made seven catches for a game-high 128 yards and a TD. C.J. Thompson tallied 103 yards on six receptions for Lawrence Tech.
Owen Golliher made six tackles with a fumble recovery to lead the Marian defense, while Jordan Morris had 11 stops for the Blue Devils.
OLIVET NAZARENE 38, #24 ROOSEVELT 31
Olivet Nazarene closed out the regular season with a win over a nationally-ranked opponent, as the Tigers upset No. 24 Roosevelt, 38-31.
The Tigers (6-4, 5-2 Midwest) tallied over 450 yards of total offense, led by Cameron Crouch’s 280 passing yards and five TDs. The visitors opened with a 29-yard TD pass from Crouch to Jalen Dunnigan before adding 19 points on three more TD passes in the second quarter.
Tyler Tenner’s TD run and a 35-yard punt return TD from Zavier Barnes in the second quarter kept Roosevelt (7-3, 4-3 Midwest) in the game, as Olivet Nazarene took a 25-14 lead into the halftime break.
In the third quarter, the Lakers made it a one-point game with Luke Wilson’s seven-yard TD pass to Jack Young, followed by a 20-yard Andrew Bucaro field goal at the end of the quarter. The Tigers would put the game away however, with back-to-back TD drives to secure the win.
Jenkins led the Tiger receiving corps with six catches for 107 yards and three TDs. For the Lakers, Ke’von Johnson rushed for 96 yards on 21 carries.
Vaisen Viloria and Brayden Cook made 10 tackles each for the Tiger defense, while Bennie Harris paced the Lakers with 13 tackles as well as a sack, fumble recovery, and two forced fumbles.
CONCORDIA 27, SAINT FRANCIS (IND.) 10
A first-quarter field goal gave Saint Francis an early lead, but Concordia would respond with 27 unanswered to claim a 27-10 home victory over the Cougars.
Jack James converted from 24 yards out to give the Cougars (4-6, 2-5 Mideast) a 3-0 lead, but the Concordia defense nearly pitched a shutout throughout the rest of the game, keeping the visitors off the scoreboard thanks to five interceptions.
The Cardinals (5-5, 4-3 Mideast) took the lead late in the first quarter, after a 79-yard drive resulted in Jalen Smith’s one-yard TD run. An interception by Colby Kohmescher midway through the second allowed Brandon Stewart to find the end zone from seven yards out to stretch the Concordia lead to 13-3 at the half.
After a scoreless third quarter, James Carpenter blew the game open with an 85-yard TD run, followed by a pick-six on Kohmescher’s third interception of the day, quickly giving the Cardinals a 27-3 lead.
Kohmescher’s performance tied a Mideast League single-game record, as the junior becomes the first player since 2011 (Justin Juarez, Saint Francis) to grab three interceptions.
Carpenter led the Cardinal attack with 163 yards and a TD on 14 carries. Liam Karry made a team-high 11 tackles with a sack for Concordia, while Nate Talhelm finished with 13 stops and a forced fumble for the Cougars.
SIENA HEIGHTS 24, TAYLOR 7
BOX SCORE | RECAPS: SHU | TU
A defensive effort that secured four interceptions helped give Siena Heights a road win in the season finale, as the Saints earned a 24-7 victory over Taylor.
After a three-and-out to start the game, the Saints (5-5, 4-3 Mideast) scored on their first drive, when Kaleb Jefferson broke free for a 47-yard TD run. In the second quarter, Anthony Secchi extended the lead with a 27-yard field goal, giving Siena Heights a 10-0 lead at the half.
Following Armand Childs’ interception midway through the third quarter, Siena Heights found the end zone again, with Jamon Benson’s 28-yard rush that set up Justin McCown’s one-yard TD run.
The Trojans (5-6, 3-4 Mideast) got on the board to start the fourth quarter, with Elijah McCloskey’s 41-yard TD pass to Dakohta Sonnichsen. The Saints would close out the victory with one more trip to the end zone, with Justin Wise scoring from 26 yards out to secure the win.
Jefferson led the Saints’ attack, rushing 20 times for 129 yards and a TD. Kole Murlin finished with 12 tackles to lead the Siena Heights defense, while Jacob Hockett’s 13 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss paced the Trojans.
MISSOURI BAPTIST 42, ST. AMBROSE 38
Erasing a 17-point deficit, the hosts St. Ambrose took a third-quarter lead, but Marcellus Griffin’s third TD run of the day gave Missouri Baptist the win, 42-38 in the season finale.
The Spartans (4-7, 2-5 Midwest) jumped out to a 24-7 lead in the second quarter behind a pair of rushing TDs from Darius Morrison and Griffin. The Bees (2-8, 2-5 Midwest) responded with ten points in the final 3:43 of the first half, as Ben Gilbert’s one-yard TD run and Joey Sprinkle’s TD pass to Yemi Ward made it a 24-21 MBU lead at the half.
In the third quarter, Sprinkle found Gilbert for a 41-yard TD pass to give St. Ambrose a 28-27 lead. Griffin put the Spartans back on top on their next drive, with a one-yard TD run for the 35-28 edge. The Bees answered again, with a 74-yard TD pass from Tom Casey to Justin Wright, and a 22-yard field goal from Joe Namio early in the fourth quarter put the home team ahead 38-35.
The Spartans took the lead for good, marching 69 yards and taking nearly eight minutes off the clock, as Griffin scored the game-winner from three yards out. St. Ambrose would take their final possession into Spartan territory, but an incompletion on 4th-and-15 would close out the win for Missouri Baptist.
Cooper Brown led the Spartans with 186 passing yards and one TD, while Griffin rushed for 69 yards and three TDs on 20 carries. Ward collected a game-high seven catches for 143 yards and two TDs, while Ray Bouye III rushed 12 times for 102 yards for St. Ambrose.
Defensively, Blake Kight made nine tackles and had two of the Spartans’ seven sacks on the day, while Zak Alberts led the Bees with 11 tackles.
TRINITY INTERNATIONAL 42, JUDSON 32
Scoring a season-high 42 points in the season finale, Trinity International avoided a winless campaign with a 42-32 road victory over Judson.
Liam Mickle threw two TDs while the Trojan rushing attack tallied 226 yards and three TDs win the win. Trinity (1-10, 1-6 Midwest) opened with 14 first-quarter points, on a 28-yard TD run from Bryce Thurman, and a 35-yard fumble recovery TD from Ronnie Wallace.
Jusdson (2-8, 1-6 Midwest) responded with three TDs in the second quarter, including two from Brandon Mackey, but the Trojans also scored twice to take a 28-20 lead at the half. A 14-yard Derek Lowe TD run and a 64-yard TD pass from Mickle to Cameron Jones gave the Trojans a three-score lead, enough to withstand two more TD runs from Mackey – from 62 and 60 yards, respectively – and hold on for the win.
Mickle completed 9 of 18 passes for 167 yards to lead the Trojans, while Lowe rushed 19 times for 90 yards and a TD. Mackey finished with 288 yards and four TDs for the Eagles, on 38 rushing attempts. His 288 rushing yards is the sixth-most in a single-game in Midwest League history.
Corey Watkins made 12 tackles with three tackles for loss and a forced fumble to lead Trinity International, while E.J. Glover made seven stops for Judson.
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