DULUTH, Minn. – An interception on Saint John's first offensive play, a 34-yard run and an Elijah Adzimahe (Oakdale, MN/North St. Paul HS) touchdown gave The College of St. Scholastica football team an early lead over the nation's third-ranked team Saturday at Public Schools Stadium. The Saints held that advantage until late in the opening quarter before the unbeaten Johnnies pulled away for a 56-6 victory.
Isaac Johnson (St. Paul, MN/St. Paul Highland Park HS) provided the first spark, intercepting Trey Feeney on Saint John's opening snap and returning the ball two yards to the Johnnies' 46-yard line. St. Scholastica's offense capitalized with a six-play scoring drive highlighted by Stephan Jackson's (Minneapolis, MN/Minneapolis North HS) 34-yard burst on third-and-one, which carried the Saints to the 3-yard line.
Facing another third down, Adzimahe powered into the end zone from three yards out to put St. Scholastica ahead 6-0 with 10:53 remaining in the first quarter.
The Saints' defense followed with another stop to protect the lead. Ashton Gross (Osceola, WI/Osceola HS) sacked Feeney and forced a fumble that Saint John's recovered, and St. Scholastica ultimately forced an incomplete pass on fourth-and-seven from the Saints' 27-yard line to take over on downs.
Saint John's broke through on its next possession, scoring on a 30-yard pass from Feeney to Charlie Plum with 4:01 left in the quarter. The extra point gave the Johnnies a 7-6 lead, which remained the score entering the second quarter.
The visitors added three touchdowns before halftime to build a 28-6 advantage. Feeney connected with Thomas Jacobs for a 12-yard score, and Sedric Melvin Jr. added touchdown runs of one and 13 yards.
St. Scholastica produced another defensive takeaway on the opening possession of the second half. Logan Flaa (St. Paul, MN/Tartan HS) sacked Feeney for an 11-yard loss and forced a fumble, with Josiah Larson (Moose Lake, MN/Cloquet High School) recovering at the Saints' 47-yard line. The defense then forced a punt on Saint John's next possession before the Johnnies extended their lead with an 83-yard touchdown pass to Plum late in the third quarter.
Jackson paced the Saints' rushing attack with 60 yards on five carries, while Griffin Webb (Fort Frances, ON/Fort Frances HS) added 42 yards on nine attempts. Nathan Behrens (Watertown, MN/Watertown-Mayer HS) caught four passes for 56 yards, including a 40-yard reception in the fourth quarter. Adzimahe finished with 81 passing yards and the rushing touchdown.
Gross led St. Scholastica with nine tackles, a sack and a forced fumble. Larson recorded eight tackles, a sack and a fumble recovery, while Flaa finished with five tackles, a sack and a forced fumble. Payden Yeats (Laporte, MN/Walker-Hackensack-Akeley HS) added a sack as the Saints brought down Feeney four times.
Feeney passed for 408 yards and five touchdowns for Saint John's, while Melvin rushed for 156 yards and two scores.
St. Scholastica moved to 1-8 overall and 1-7 in MIAC play. Saint John's improved to 9-0 overall and 8-0 in the conference.
