Notables:
-Saints are now 8-2 all time in homecoming games
-LeMay hit a career high of 202 rushing yards
-CSS is 5-0 versus Iowa Wesleyan
-Passing yards: CSS - 295, IWU - 111

DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) - The St. Scholastica football team faced Iowa Wesleyan University on Saturday at Malosky Stadium for its homecoming game and found success, winning 38-28 to remain undefeated in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC).

Slow First Half
The first CSS possession of the game looked promising, with the team marching up the field for 66 yards in six plays, but on first and goal at the seven yard line, the Saints turned the ball over on a fumble and spoiled the successful drive. The CSS defense stopped the Tigers after they recovered the fumble, and the Saints put some points on the board on their next possession on a 20 yard completion from quarterback Zach Edwards (West St. Paul, Minn./Henry Sibley HS) to Ben Buthe (New Prague, Minn./New Prague HS) for the touchdown. Donovan Blatz (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View HS) put one between the uprights for the extra point to make the score 7-0. The Tigers would not be deterred by the Saints' success though, and they gained 77 yards in the next seven plays for a touchdown, the only first quarter points CSS has allowed in conference games all season. The second quarter saw a lot of trading of the ball between the two clubs, with neither offense finding its groove.

Second Half Drama
The third quarter was a big one for CSS. They opened play after halftime with a touchdown on an 11-yard pass completion to Jeff LeMay (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View HS). An extra point from Blatz made the score 14-7, giving the Saints a lead they would manage to hold for the rest of the game. On the first play of the next Iowa Wesleyan drive, Blatz jumped in front of a pass for a pick six, returning the interception for 50 yards, then followed up by kicking the extra point to prove his offensive value. Jonathan Senger (Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo HS) pulled in an interception of his own on the next Tiger possession, and the Saints kept pushing. In five plays they put another touchdown on the board, coming on LeMay's first career rushing touchdown to extend their lead to 28-7.

Yet another interception came on the next drive by the Tigers on a nice play from Kenneth Jinkins (West St. Paul, Minn./Henry Sibley HS), but it was called back due to a penalty. Iowa Wesleyan finally managed to put a man in the end zone, and a successful extra point put the score at 28-14. 

The Saints started the fourth quarter off with a field goal - three points that would prove to be valuable to CSS later in the quarter - to make the score 31-14. IWU made things interesting after that, scoring on its next drive to get to within ten points of the lead. Then the Tigers' defense intercepted a pass on the next CSS drive, and returned it 84 yards for a touchdown to make the score 31-28 with just under 11 minutes left to play in the game.

LeMay was instrumental on the next Saints possession - their most important of the game - with seven of the ten plays on the drive going to him. A 37-yard pass completion to Christian Rund (South St. Paul, Minn./South St. Paul HS (Hamline)) helped out too, and the Saints pushed the ball over the goal line to expand the 3-point cushion that kept the Tigers from tying up the score. The game fell apart for Iowa Wesleyan on its final two drives, with both of them ending in forced turnovers. The first was an interception, snagged by Senger for his second of the game, and the last was a fumble forced by Jordan Kittelson (Avon, Minn./Albany HS) and recovered by Will Halloran (Belle Plaine, Minn./New Prague HS) with less than a minute to go. The game ended with a 38-28 score in favor of CSS.

Notable Performances
Sophomore running back Jeff LeMay (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View HS) had the biggest game of his career to date, with 202 rushing yards, two rushing touchdowns, 36 receiving yards and a touchdown completion. He had 32 carriers - more than triple his highest number of carries prior to the game versus IWU. Another key offensive player was Edwards, who threw 16 completions for 295 yards and two touchdowns. Jack Peru (Phoenix, Ariz./Trevor G. Browne HS (Phoenix College)) earned 76 yards on four receptions. On defense, Blatz had six solo tackles and an interception, and Senger had two interceptions of his own. Jake Zoellick (Sarona, Wis./Rice Lake HS) had two sacks.

For the Tigers, Jacquez Hall earned 93 rushing yards with an average of 7.8 yards per carry. On  defense, Christian Henriksen had four solo tackles and two sacks. Craig Wrenn had the interception for IWU and Garrett Hicks forced a fumble.

Up Next
The Saints (5-1, 5-0 UMAC) will be in Duluth again next Saturday, this time at Public Schools Stadium for another UMAC matchup when they face Martin Luther College at 4:30. Follow the action live on Saints Sports Net.