Shutout gives Macalester 2-1 start to season
Clark
Bledsoe (So., Jacksonville, Fla. / Episcopal) made his
first collegiate start at quarterback, and went 25-for-37 for 283
yards and a touchdown to lead Macalester to a 21-0 shutout win in
St. Paul over Maranatha Baptist Bible (Wis.). The Scots out-gained
the Crusaders 20-11 in first downs and 434-193 in total yardage to
improve to 2-1 on the season.
Riley
Koval (So., Mount Horeb, Wis.) caught five passes for 112
yards and a TD and Mike
Snavely (Jr., Minneapolis, Minn. / Southwest) caught
seven passes for 60 yards.
David
Melms (So., Wauwatosa, Wis. / Wisconsin Lutheran) and
Kent
Hackbarth (So., Wausau, Wis. / West) intercepted passes
to lead the Macalester defense.
Macalester earned a 75-56 advantage in total plays and the Mac
defensive unit gave up just 3.4 yards per play while forcing four
turnovers. The Scots yielded only one first down rushing.
Maranatha took nearly six minutes off the clock on its first drive
and forced the Scots to a three-and-out to get the ball back
quickly. The Crusaders then downed a punt at the Mac two-yard line
on their second possession. It didn't take long, however, for
Macalester to establish control as the Scots responded with three
quick first downs followed by a deep 54-yard touchdown strike from
Bledsoe to Koval.
The game's next score didn't come until late in the
third quarter when Eric
Engstrom (Sr., Apple Valley, Minn.) recovered a fumble at
the Crusader 28-yard line to set up a T. Joe
Loiselle (Jr., Chippewa Falls, Wis.) two-yard scoring
plunge. Loiselle runs accounted for five of the six Macalester
plays on the drive.
Just three snaps after Loiselle's score, Zach
Englert (So., Salt Lake City, Utah / Skyline) recovered
another fumble in Crusader territory to set up Macalester's
third TD. A third-and-six passing conversion from Bledsoe to
Snavely kept the drive alive and with 13:43 to play, Mike
Adams (So., Chppewa Falls, Wis.) ran it into the end zone
from seven yards away. Auburn
Jimenez (Fy., East Los Angeles, Calif. / St. John Bosco)
booted his third extra point of the day to make the tally 21-0.
Phil Littrell was 15-for-29 passing for 143 yards for Maranatha
Baptist. Matt Morrison and Joel Kobosh each pulled in five
receptions. Ethan Rosen registered 11 tackles.
The Scots play their third straight home game and go for their
third straight win next Saturday (Sept. 25) when they host Crown at
6 p.m.
