University of St. Thomas Athletics
4-1
Gustavus Adolphus
3-2
Defense stout in Football's 20-12 victory
10/12/2013 12:00:00 AM | Football
By DOUG HENNES
ST. PETER - Glenn Caruso calls the defense on his football team "a stabilizing force," and never was it needed more than on Saturday against Gustavus Adolphus.
The Tommies were clinging to a 20-12 lead with less than two minutes to play, and the Gusties were on a roll. They had moved 58 yards and, with a first down on the St. Thomas 21, seemed to have all of the momentum in the world.
But a run gained only one yard and the next three passes fell incomplete, allowing the sixth-ranked Tommies to take over on downs and run out the clock for a hard-fought win over Gustavus on wind-swept Hollingsworth Field.
"We brought in new guys in new roles this year, and they're fitting together well right now," Caruso said. "The seniors made such a difference today. Tremayne (Williams), Riley (Dombek) and Steve (Dejewski) were huge -- they played the way seniors should play in this league."
Williams felt confident the defense would hold at the end. The senior linebacker had seven solo tackles, including three for loss, 1.5 sacks and his second interception of the year. Dejewski finished with eight tackles and Dombek had seven.
"They came close on that last drive," Williams said of the Gusties, "but we showed that we could step up and stop them. I was proud of that."
The Tommies (4-1, 2-1 MIAC) survived three turnovers, a season-low 255 yards of offense, an ankle injury that knocked starting quarterback Matt O'Connell out of the game and a resilient opponent that wouldn't back down.
"It was an intricate game within a game -- like a chess match -- and a ton of fun," Caruso said. "That's the most adjustments we've made all year long."
The path doesn't get any easier for the Tommies. They will go on the road again next Saturday, to Arden Hills, to face fifth-ranked Bethel. The Royals coasted past No. 22 Concordia 45-22 in Moorhead to run their record to 5-0 and 3-0 - the only undefeated team in the MIAC.
Slow Start for Tommies
St. Thomas struggled on its first three possessions, losing the ball twice on Brenton Braddock fumbles before putting together its only scoring drive of the first half.
The Tommies took over at the Gustavus 45 and needed 10 plays and four minutes for a 7-0 lead on an O'Connell sneak from the 1 and a Paul Graupner PAT kick.
Gustavus responded with a 12-play, 61-yard drive to cut the St. Thomas lead to 7-6 but missed the extra point. The drive was aided by two 15-yard St. Thomas penalties and ended on quarterback Mitch Hendrick's third-down scramble from the 2.
O'Connell was hurt on the Tommies' next possession. They had the ball at the Gustavus 47 when the junior quarterback, back from missing the Oct. 4 win over Carleton, was hit on a first-down pass. Two sophomores -- John Gould for one series and Alex Fenske for the rest of the game -- replaced O'Connell, as they did Oct. 4 against Carleton when illness sidelined him.
Fenske Delivers
Fenske shined on St. Thomas' second possession of the second half, capping a 50-play, six-yard drive with a 19-yard touchdown pass to freshman Nick Waldvogel and a 13-6 lead. The Tommies went for two points, but Waldvogel was stopped short of the end zone.
Gustavus linebacker Lucas Kleinschrodt intercepted Fenske on the third play of the fourth quarter and returned the ball to the St. Thomas 35. Three plays later, Hendricks found Jake Douglas in the end zone for a 22-yard touchdown reception, but Sean Hamlin blocked the extra point and St. Thomas maintained the 13-12 lead.
A poor Gustavus punt set up the final St. Thomas touchdown. The Tommies took over at the Gusties' 35 and needed only six plays to score. Fenske's third-and-6 pass at the Gustavus 11 was deflected by a defender and grabbed in the end zone by junior tight end Cole Kelly. Graupner's extra point made the score 20-12.
"I just turned around and saw the ball in the air," Kelly said of the deflected pass, which was intended for fellow tight end Greg Kriege. "I just went for it. I was a little surprised!"
The six-play drive featured five rushes by sophomore Jack Kaiser, who finished with 19 carries and 87 yards -- 13 for 69 in the second half.
"I knew I was going to be getting the load," Kaiser said. "I just tried to run the ball meaner and hit the hole harder, and it paid off."
Kaiser's effort pleased Caruso. "In the last three to four weeks, we have not seen the attacking, aggressive running game of the last couple of years," Caruso said. "We saw that today with Jack, especially in that last drive."
Fenske completed 9 of 20 passes on the day for 85 yards and the two touchdowns. He started the season No. 4 on the quarterback depth charts.
"I thought he showed unbelievable poise in the pocket," Caruso said. "For a sophomore to come into the game in a difficult situation, he really stood tall today."
Caruso tipped his hat again to his defense. The Tommies came in ranked No. 8 in NCAA Division III for least yards allowed per game (227) and No. 10 for least points (10) and rushing yards (72) per game. Gustavus finished with 170 yards, including 20 on the ground, and star running back Jeffrey Dubose had only 48 rushing yards -- 102 below his average of 150.
"The key was our defensive line," Caruso said. "It did an amazing job plugging the gaps and not allowing him (Dubose) to hit the holes."
Bethel Next
The Tommies have defeated Bethel in all five regular-season games under Caruso, including a 37-0 Homecoming win last year and a 23-13 away win two years ago. The Royals turned away St. Thomas in a NCAA Division III quarterfinal game in 2010.
In other MIAC action Saturday, St. John's outlasted Augsburg 30-28 and Hamline defeated St. Olaf 31-28. Carleton knocked off Macalester 56-17 in a non-conference game. St. Thomas, St. John's and Concordia have one loss behind Bethel.
Box score:
http://www.miacathletics.com/sports/fball/2013-14/boxscores/20131012_og3s.xml
Team Stats
UST-MEN 7, GAC 0
UST-MEN - Matt O'Connell 1 yd run (Paul Graupner kick), 10 plays, 45 yards, TOP 4:04
UST-MEN 7, GAC 6
GAC - Mitch Hendricks 2 yd run (T. Schleusener kickfailed), 12 plays, 61 yards, TOP 5:12
UST-MEN 13, GAC 6
UST-MEN - Nick Waldvogel 19 yd pass from Alex Fenske (Nick Waldvogel rushfailed) 6 plays, 50 yards, TOP 2:04
UST-MEN 13, GAC 12
GAC - Jake Douglas 22 yd pass from Mitch Hendricks (T. Schleusener kickblocked) 3 plays, 35 yards, TOP 1:13
UST-MEN 20, GAC 12
UST-MEN - Cole Kelly 11 yd pass from Alex Fenske (Paul Graupner kick) 6 plays, 35 yards, TOP 3:15
