SAINT PETER, Minn. — For the first time in 10 years, the Gustavus football team beat Saint John's with a 38-35 victory at Hollingsworth Field on Saturday afternoon, improving to 4-3 overall, 2-2 in the MIAC, and 2-0 in the Northwoods Division. Leading by three with 1:50 remaining in the game, sophomore
Eric Lyons Jr. intercepted the Johnnies' go-ahead touchdown to seal a win over the No. 7-ranked team in Division III, marking just the third victory over the Johnnies in the past 35 years.
"That was a really special win for us, no doubt about it," said Head Coach
Peter Haugen. "I'm really proud of our guys and our coaches and all the work they've done and resilience they've shown this year. We just have to keep plugging away. We will certainly enjoy this win, and we're very humbled and thankful for it."
On the first possession of the game, the Johnnies moved the ball 75 yards in eight plays, scoring the game's opening touchdown on an eight-yard pass. On the ensuing Gustie possession, the Johnnies intercepted a pass from
George Sandven, returning it for a 59-yard touchdown to take an early 14-0 advantage in the first quarter.
Walker Britz got the Gusties on the board with a two-yard run to cap a seven-play drive for a 14-7 score in the first. The Gustie defense forced the Johnnies to punt on the next possession, thanks largely to a third down sack from
Javier Gratacos. The Johnnies responded with an interception on the Gusties' first play of the next drive, and went out on downs to end the first frame.
The Gusties started the second quarter with a 13-play, 66-yard drive, getting within a yard of the Johnnie endzone, but struggled to convert, settling for an
Andrew Abegglen 26-yard field goal to bring the score to 14-10. The Johnnies added one more touchdown before the end of the quarter, but it was
Caden Kleinschmidt to put the punctuation mark on the first half. As the clock ticked down to the final second of the second quarter,
George Sandven sent a 43-yard Hail Mary to Kleinschmidt, giving the Gusties a 24-21 lead at halftime.
Sandven opened the third quarter with a one-yard score, running in for the touchdown for a 31-21 lead. The Johnnies responded with a pair of third quarter touchdowns on their next two possessions to retake a 35-31 lead.
Sandven, up to the challenge, capped a seven-play, 74-yard drive late in the third quarter with a 49-yard touchdown pass to
Rohee Konde, which proved to be the game-winning score.
Neither team scored in the fourth quarter, but Lyons' late interception proved to be the game-changing play of the day. Lyons, who dropped a near interception the play before, found redemption in the biggest way, intercepting Johnnie quarterback Aaron Syverson's final pass of the game in the final minutes of play.
The Gusties outgained the Johnnies 465-344 and won the time of possession battle handedly, with 15 more minutes.
Sandven completed 25-of-37 passes for 353 yards and three touchdowns. Three Gusties had at least eight carries, led by
Rohee Konde with 18 attempts for 77 yards.
Jake Breitbach once again led the receiving game, posting 10 catches for 122 yards, his sixth 100-plus yard game.
William Hawkins led the Gustie defense with seven total tackles, while
Carson DeKam posted six of his own, one tackle for loss, and a sack. The defense tied its season high with three sacks on Johnnie quarterback Syverson.
Senior kicker
Andrew Abegglen, who went 5-for-5 on extra points with a 26-yard field goal, broke the 25-year-old program kicking record with his first third quarter extra point. Abegglen surpassed Gustavus Hall of Famer Ryan Boutwell in the record books for most career kicking points, sitting with 202 in his career.
"We were able to move the ball today, and outside of a couple of mistakes, just played really well, and we couldn't be prouder of these players and their resilience. You could see it at the end of the game — we dropped the interception, and the same player who dropped it,
Eric Lyons Jr., who is one of our guys that brings a lot of character to the team — came back to make the play at the end, which was a big deal.
"We're still in this divisional race. We're trying to win games so we can play in the championship down the road, but right now we have to continue to get better and find a way to beat St. Olaf next week. With the amount of parity in our league, we need to be ready to compete every single week. When you've been to the bottom with a couple of tough losses, and then to the top with today's win, we just have to challenge ourselves that, regardless of the outcome, we will be the same team coming back every Monday."
Gustavus hits the road next weekend, traveling to St. Olaf for a MIAC Northwoods matchup at 1 p.m. in Northfield.
