by Rich Mies, CSN Mapping the MIAC Columnist

Every minute counted as the wild title chase in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference continued, with four games decided by a total of 12 points. St. Thomas scored as the clock expired to nip Carleton, 33-31. League-leader Concordia scored with in the final 20 seconds to escape Hamline with an 18-17 win. Saint John’s needed overtime to get by St. Olaf, 20-17. Gustavus scored with under five minutes remaining to top Augsburg 34-31 behind a 258-yard performance by Ray Wilson.

When the dust settled, Concordia held onto their precarious lead. They are half a game ahead of Saint John’s and St. Thomas, with Bethel, Carleton and Gustavus a game off the pace.

CONCORDIA 18, HAMLINE 17
The Cobbers shook off a persistent Piper defense and charged from behind to set the stage for a game-winning field goal with 0:12 remaining before a crowd of 1,236 at Hamline.

Special teams and defense played a big role for both teams, as Hamline recovered a blocked punt in the end zone in the second quarter for a touchdown and Concordia turned a botched snap on a punt into a safety late in the game.

The Pipers took the opening kickoff and marched downfield, covering 49 yards on 12 plays before Larry Deeton plunged in from one-yard out. With the PAT, Hamline led 7-0.

On Concordia’s first drive, the Hamline defense was stifling, and notched a big third down sack, forcing the Cobbers to punt from near the end zone. Brady Lorenzen blocked the punt and Kyle Nitz recovered the ball in the end zone for a Hamline TD. The PAT was good, lifting the Pipers to a 14-0 lead.

Hamline’s defense came up big on the next series after Concordia drove to the ten-yard line. The Pipers dug in and stopped four straight running plays to keep the Cobbers off the scoreboard. They also stopped the Cobbers on fourth-and-one from the Hamline nine to take the 14-0 lead into the intermission.

In the third quarter, the Cobbers abandoned their usual run-oriented offense, taking to the air. They strung together five completions to advance to the Hamline five, with 0:29 left in the quarter. From there, Cory Johnson got the call and drove through into the end zone, trimming the Piper lead to 14-7.

Early in the fourth quarter, Hamline was punting from deep in its own territory. The snap got away from the punter, who recovered it in the end zone, where he was tackled for a safety. The Cobbers took the ensuing kick and raced downfield, covering 54 yards on nine plays. Nick Birchem punched it in from two yards out, putting Concordia on top, 15-14, with less than seven minutes to play. The Cobbers opted to try for the two-point PAT, but failed to convert.

The Pipers methodically moved the ball down field, burning 5:03 off the game clock as they got down to the Cobber 30. Facing fourth-and-6 there with 1:41 left to play, Derek Johnson came in and drilled home a 47-yard field goal, lifting Hamline on top, 17-15.

A 37-yard return on the ensuing kickoff gave the Cobbers momentum. Their hurry-up offense moved the ball down field, and they were aided by a crucial that moved them to the Hamline 20. They stalled at the Piper 10 and on third down elected to have Carl Hauser come in and attempt a 27-yard field goal. The kick was good, putting Concordia on top 18-17 with 0:12 to go. A sack on the first play from scrimmage sealed the win for Concordia.

Hamline’s James Leary rushed for a game-best 67 yards. He also completed eight-of-19 passes for 51 yards to lead the Pipers. Their defense limited the Cobbers to 91 yards on the ground and recorded four sacks.

Concordia’s Jesse Nelson completed 27-of-40 passes for 281 yards. Nick Alton led the receivers with 10 catches for 125 yards.

With the win, the Cobbers improve to 4-1 in conference games and 5-2 overall. They host St. Olaf on Saturday.

Hamline drops to 0-6 in MIAC play and 1-6 overall. The Pipers travel to Carleton on Saturday in search of their first conference win.

ST. THOMAS 33, CARLETON 31
The Tommies rallied in the final minute of play and David Sauer connected with Jake Friederichs from six yards out at the clock expired for a dramatic 33-31 win over the Knights before 2500 at St. Thomas.

Carleton relied on “Air Henfling” as quarterback Shane Henfling completed 41-of-52 passes for 392 yards, breaking the school record for completions in a game. Matt Frank caught 16 of those passes for 126 yards. That was the most receptions by a Knight in a game. Henfling is 10 yards shy of the school single-season record for passing yardage. Steve Ramey added eight catches for 93 yards and Chris Gardner had seven receptions for 102 yards.

The Tommies countered with “Ground Wartman” as Ben Wartman rushed for 124 yards on 32 carries to lead the offense. Sauer connected on 18-of-31 passes for 217 yards. Frit Waldvogel led the Tommies with six receptions for 96 yards. Friederichs, a senior tight end who had never caught a TD pass in high school or college before snaring one last week hauled in a four yard TD as well as the game winner.

UST drove into the red zone on the game’s opening drive, but the Knights defense came up big, breaking up a reverse on fourth down for an 11-yard loss. Carleton drove down to the Tommie 13 before stalling and had to settle for a 30-yard field goal by Tim Kane to take a 3-0 lead late in the first quarter.

St. Thomas put together a 12-play drive that wound into the second quarter and covered 69 yards. Sauer spotted Friederichs open in the back of the end zone and drilled the ball to him for the touchdown and a 7-3 lead. On the ensuing kickoff, UST got a big break as Tim Bielecki fumbled the ball and Tommie kicker Alex Gauper recovered it at the Carleton 22 yard line. Six plays later, Wartman took the handoff and plowed up the middle from the one, putting UST on top, 14-3.

The Knights refused to fold. After a Tommie interception set up a 31-yard field goal attempt, Carleton’s Nick Cesarek blocked the kick and recovered the ball at the 20. Five plays later, Henfling connected with Ramey for a 25-yard scoring play to trim the gap to 14-10.

Carleton reclaimed the lead on the opening drive of the second half. Henfling completed his first six passes of the half before scampering into the end zone on a one-yard keeper. With the PAT, the Knights led 17-14.

St. Thomas wasted little time scoring as Sauer marshaled a 68-yard drive on their next possession. The drive was punctuated by a four-yard plunge by Wartman, who darted through a gap in the line. However, Gardner blocked the PAT attempt, keeping UST’s lead at 20-17.
Late in the third quarter, the Tommie defense forced the Knights to punt. Waldvogel fielded the kick at the UST 30. He bobbed and weaved down the left side for a 70-yard touchdown. The PAT pushed the Tommie lead to 27-17.

Henfling connected with Frank for an 11-yard touchdown with 6:16 remaining in the fourth quarter to trim the gap to 27-24. After the Knights forced a punt on UST’s next drive, Henfling led a six-play, 71-yard drive that was aided by a key pass interference call against St. Thomas, moving the ball to the 11-yard line. Two plays later, Henfling rifled a pass to Gardner at the goal line. The ball popped loose but was recovered by Ramey in the end zone for a TD. That put Carleton on top 31-27 with 1:22 to play.

UST took over at its own 36 yard line. Sauer connected on successive plays to move the chains into Carleton territory. Waldvogel made an acrobatic fourth-down catch on the sideline, giving UST first-and-goal from the seven. A pair of incomplete passes left the Tommies facing fourth-and-goal from the six with 1.5 seconds left in the game. Sauer dropped back and rolled to his right. He spotted Friederichs open in the end zone to his left and drilled the ball to him for the game winner.

St. Thomas has now won 16 in a row over Carleton. They are 4-2 in MIAC action and 5-2 overall. The Toms travel to Augsburg on Saturday.

The loss was the second consecutive last-second loss for the Knights, who fall to 3-2 in league play and 5-2 overall. They look to get back on the winning track Saturday as they host Hamline.

GUSTAVUS 34, AUGSBURG 31
The Gusties, behind a school record 258-yard rushing performance by Ray Wilson, held off the Auggies to claim a 34-31 win before 3,286 fans at Gustavus.

Control of the clock helped the “Ground Gusties” overcome “Air Auggies,” as GAC held the ball for 33:10 of the game, racking up 467 yards in total offense to Augsburg’s 405. Gustavus ran 80 plays to the Auggies’ 68 and was flagged for just four penalties and 20 yards; Augsburg was whistled for six penalties and 40 yards.

In addition to Wilson’s record day, Jordan Becker completed nine-of-23 passes for 113 yards. Chad Arlt caught three of them for 67 yards.

For the Auggies, Jordan Berg completed 24—of-49 for 346 yards and three touchdowns. Royce Winford had 10 catches for 171 yards and a score, while Muneer Al-Hameed hauled in six passes for 72 yards and a TD.

Gustavus drew first blood, taking the opening kick and marching 60 yards. Wilson capped the drive with a one-yard TD, but the PAT failed, giving GAC a 6-0 lead.

Augsburg countered with a 25-yard field goal later in the first quarter, halving the gap, but Gusties used a 14-play drive that wrapped into the second quarter to extend the lead to 13-3 as Becker darted in from the two-yard line.

The Auggies cut that lead to 13-10 as Jason Potts broke through the line from one yard out. On the ensuing kick return, Lucas Armstrong fumbled at the GAC 34. It was recovered by Dane Bates. Three snaps later, Berg hooked up with Potts for a 29-yard scoring strike, giving Augsburg a 17-13 lead, which held into the intermission.

In the third quarter, the teams swapped touchdowns. Gustavus regained the lead on a one-yard TD by Adam Lukes, but Augsburg countered with a 23-yard scoring strike from berg to Al-Hameed to take a 24-20 lead into the fourth quarter.

Gustavus took the lead for good early in the fourth, as Becker and Arlt teamed up for a 46-yard TD. After the defense forced Augsburg to punt, Wilson broke loose for an 81-yard touchdown run, upping the lead to 34-24.

Augsburg countered with a four-yard scoring pass from Berg to Winford to close out the scoring.

The win keeps the Gusties in the thick of the title chase. They stand 3-2 in league play and 5-2 overall. Gustavus has a key showdown next week, playing at Bethel.

With the loss, Augsburg falls to 2-3 in MIAC games and 4-3 on the season. They look to regroup on Saturday, hosting St. Thomas.

SAINT JOHN’S 20, ST. OLAF 14 (Overtime)
The Johnnies forced a fumble in overtime and Joe Boyle scampered in from one yard out to give SJU a 20-14 win before a crowd of 3,919 at St. Olaf.

Boyle completed 12-of-23 passes for 115 yards to lead Saint John’s. Ben Vanderheyden had five catches for 71 yards to lead the Johnnie receivers. Jakob Reding led the ground game with 53 yards.

For St. Olaf, John Haberman completed 13-of-19 passes for 129 yards. Evan Endsley led the running game with 57 yards.

Following a scoreless first quarter, St. Olaf got on the board first with a two-yard touchdown run by Endsley midway through the second quarter.

SJU retaliated with a 13-play, 99-yard scoring drive that Boyle capped with a 26-yard touchdown pass to Vanderheyden on the final play of the first half.

An interception by Bobby Klint on the Oles’ third play of the second half gave the Johnnies excellent field position on St. Olaf’s 15-yard line. Seven plays later, Reding gave the Johnnies a 14-7 lead with a four-yard touchdown.

Endsley scored his second rushing touchdown of the game, this time from four yards out, to tie the game at 14-14 with 5:14 left in regulation.

The final minutes were filled with drama. St. Olaf’s Tyler Jones intercepted an errant Boyle pass, giving the Oles the ball on SJU’s 35-yard line with 4:15 left. They drove to the SJU five-yard line with one second left, but a 22-yard field goal attempt by Jordan Rosedahl was blocked, sending the game into overtime.

On St. Olaf’s first play of overtime, John Haberman hit Ryan St. John on a pass to the Johnnies’ nine-yard line, but Klint jarred the ball loose. Ryan Wimmer recovered for SJU.

Three plays, Boyle scored on a one-yard run to win the game for SJU.

St. Olaf falls to 1-4 in league play and 3-4 overall. The Oles travel to Concordia on Saturday.

The win keeps Saint John’s title hopes alive, as they improve to 4-2 in MIAC action and 6-2 overall. SJU has a bye this weekend but returns to action on November 8, hosting Augsburg.

* * *

2008 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Standings
Through games of October 25, 2008

                     Conference  Overall   
  Team                  W  L     W   L    
  ----                  -  -     -   -   
Concordia College       4  1     5   2
Saint John's University 4  2     6   2    
Univ. of St. Thomas     4  2     5   2   
Carleton College        3  2     5   2
Gustavus Adolphus       3  2     5   2    
Bethel University       3  2     4   3  
Augsburg College        2  3     4   3    
St. Olaf College        1  4     3   4  
Hamline University      0  6     1   6

Saturday, November 1 2008
St. Olaf @ Concordia- 1 PM
Gustavus @ Bethel - 1 PM
St. Thomas @ Augsburg- 1 PM
Hamline @ Carleton -1 PM
Saint John’s - BYE