DULUTH, Minn. (
csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica football team will have its final game of the season on Saturday when it faces Greenville College (Ill.) at Public Schools Stadium.
Where:
Public Schools Stadium – Duluth, Minn.
When:
Saturday at Noon
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St. Scholastica Saints
Stats
Record: 6-3, 6-2 UMAC
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference: Standings | Stats
Last Action: The Saints rallied from a 14-point fourth quarter deficit to defeat Westminster College (Mo.) 21-20 in Fulton, Missouri on Saturday …
Eric Soderberg (Grand Rapids, Minn./Grand Rapids HS) got the scoring started with his second rushing TD on the year.
Aaron Olson (Esko, Minn./Esko HS) tied it up with a touchdown reception for the eighth straight game and
Jack Peru (Phoenix, Ariz./Trevor G. Browne HS (Phoenix College)) tied it late … A
Donovan Blatz (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View HS) extra point put the Saints ahead for the first time with 3:30 to play … After missing the Minnesota Morris game,
Kyle Stepka (New Prague, Minn./New Prague HS) threw for 169 yards and ran for 69 yards … Olson led the Saints with four receptions for 80 yards …
Jake Zoellick (Sarona, Wis./Rice Lake HS) led the defense with nine tackles, including three for a loss and two sacks.
Biggest Comeback?: The 14-point deficit is the largest overcome in the fourth quarter for the Saints in program history … The largest overall comeback is still the 16-point comeback to defeat the University of Minnesota Morris in the 2009 Homecoming Game … CSS has won four games when trailing entering the fourth quarter in program history, but Saturday was the first time they did so away from Duluth.
Too Many Giveaways: The Saints have committed 27 turnovers this season, including 17 in the last four weeks … The 27 turnovers are tied for the most turnovers by any team in NCAA Division III this season.
Another Score for Olson: Sophomore wide out
Aaron Olson (Esko, Minn./Esko HS) caught a touchdown pass for the eighth straight game on Saturday … … Olson ranks second in NCAA Division III with 15 receiving touchdowns and is one shy of the single-season program record of 16 held by Keegan O'Neill during the 2011 season … He ranks 10
th nationally in total touchdowns and 10
th in scoring with 90 points.
Do it All Jack: Junior
Jack Peru (Phoenix, Ariz./Trevor G. Browne HS (Phoenix College)) has five rushing attempts for 55 yards and a touchdown, nine receptions for 66 yards, is averaging 28.0 yards on five kick returns, ranks fifth on the team with 59 tackles, has a sack, an interception and two fumble recoveries this season.
No Postseason: For the first time since the 2010 season, the Saints will not participate in the NCAA Division III playoffs … It was the longest postseason streak by a school located in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois or Iowa.
Milestone Watch: Senior quarterback
Kyle Stepka (New Prague, Minn./New Prague HS) became the fourth quarterback to throw for over 3,000 yards in career last week … With two touchdown passes on Saturday, he can become the third CSS signal caller to throw at least 40 touchdown passes in a career …
Jason Senger (Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo HS (Gustavus Adolphus)) has averaged 39.0 yards per punt in his career, which will likely be a program record.
Senior Class: The Saints will honor 10 players from their senior class on Saturday at Public Schools Stadium … The class has a record of 28-8 over the past four seasons and won at least nine games in three of its four years … Six of the 10 players are playing a different position of when they arrived on campus as freshman.
UMAC Preseason Poll
1. St. Scholastica...................................... 81 points (9 First Place Votes)
2. Northwestern.......................................... 72 points (1 First Place Vote)
3. Greenville................................................ 57 points
4. Westminster............................................ 56 points
T-5. Eureka.................................................. 43 points
T-5. MacMurray........................................... 43 points
7. Crown....................................................... 42 points
8. Minnesota Morris................................... 30 points
9. Martin Luther........................................... 14 points
10. Iowa Wesleyan..................................... 12 points
Upcoming Opponent
Greenville Panthers
Record: 2-7, 2-6 UMAC
The Panthers traveled to St. Paul, Minnesota last weekend to face the University of Northwestern and fell by a 21-14 final … The game was tied 14-14 at the half and the Eagles scored on their second possession of the second half and that proved to be the difference … The Panthers' two victories this season have come by of Martin Luther College and Crown College, both at home … Prior to last week's 14-point output, the Panther offense had scored an average of 47.7 points per game in its previous three games … Greenville has been known to have a vaunted rushing attack in recent memory, leading the conference from 2010 thru the 2015 season … However, this season the Panthers rank fourth in the conference in rushing averaging 181.7 points per game … They rank third in the league in passing, averaging 209.3 yards per game … Freshman quarterback George Harris has thrown for 1,783 yards and 20 touchdowns … Junior Derek Greifzu leads the team with 34 receptions, while senior John Dudley has a team-high 515 receiving yards and eight touchdowns … On the ground, senior Hamid Camara is averaging 67.6 yards per game … Punter Michael Carie was named the UMAC Special Teams Player of the Week this week … Carie is averaging 38.1 yards per punt and has five punts over 50 yards this season … Senior lead the way defensively for the Panthers … Defensive back Nicholas Morrow has a team-high 62 tackles, including 11 for a loss … Defensive end Lincoln Johnson leads the team with 11.5 tackles for a loss and 6.5 sacks … Cory Snyder is tied for the conference lead with four interceptions … Snyder is your reigning UMAC Defensive Player of the Week.
Series Record: CSS leads 5-1
(Last Meeting: 40-19 CSS – 11/7/15)
Series History: The Saints have scored at least 40 points in the last two meetings and have scored at least 42 points in the last two games played in Duluth … The Panthers defeated the Saints at Public Schools Stadium in 2010, but St. Scholastica has rattled off five straight since then, including two winner-take-all championship games in 2013 and 2014.
