University of St. Thomas Athletics
4-3 , 3-0
Valparaiso
2-5 , 0-3
Tommies douse Beacons in 42-14 victory
10/19/2024 4:49:00 PM | Football
VALPARAISO, IND. – The University of St. Thomas football team is officially rolling. The Tommies are now 3-0 in Pioneer Football League (PFL) play after an impressive and dominating 42-14 win over Valparaiso University on Saturday. With the win, St. Thomas improves to 4-3 overall, and the Tommies enter a key match up against San Diego with a 3-0 record in PFL play.
RECAP:
Both St. Thomas and Valparaiso scored touchdowns in the first quarter, resulting in a 7-7 tie after the opening 15 minutes of play. The Tommies broke the scoreless tie first, as Tak Tateoka (Waukesha, Wis. / Waukesha South) connected with Colin Chase (Orange County, Calif. / St. John Bosco) for a 74-yard touchdown reception to give St. Thomas an early 7-0 lead. The Beacons responded with their own touchdown not five minutes later, driving 61 yards downfield to make it 7-7 at the conclusion of the first quarter.
The second quarter started with a band for the Tommies, as they once again found themselves with a seven point advantage. This time, it was the legs of Hope Adebayo (Inver Grove Heights, Minn. / Simley) that resulted in a touchdown for St. Thomas, but not without some magic from Tateoka. The sophomore QB found himself scrambling at the 50-yard line, desperately searching for an open receiver down field on third-and-long. He eventually connected with Eli Paulson (Ramsey, Minn. / Anoka) for a 44-yard reception, setting up Adebayo's one yard touchdown run a few plays later.
Things only continued to get better for the Tommies, as they walked into the locker room with a 28-7 lead at the half. Thanks to two forced fumbles by the defense, St. Thomas scored 14 points on turnovers, and both Jacob Wildermuth (Plymouth, Minn. / Wayzata) and Gabriel Abel (Trenton, N.J. / Salisbury) scored touchdowns for the Tommies. Ben Hoiland (North Oaks, Minn. / Mounds View) continued to impress in his third game for the Purple, going 4-4 on PATs to bolster the St. Thomas lead.
Neither team managed to score in the third quarter, though Valparaiso looked to put something together at the start of the fourth. With a new quarterback on the field, the Beacons entered Tommie territory and looked to cut the St. Thomas lead in half. After an impressive batted ball on third-and-ten, it looked like the Tommie defense might get through unscathed, but Valparaiso managed to score on a SportsCenter worthy catch, cutting St. Thomas' lead to 28-14 with 12:27 remaining in the ball game. The Tommies responded in kind, as Adebayo rushed for his second touchdown of the day to regain a 35-14 advantage for St. Thomas.
The Tommies would score one final time Saturday afternoon, as Joseph Koch (Menomonee Falls, Wis. / Menomonee Falls) rushed for a 44-yard touchdown to secure a 42-14 victory for St. Thomas.
TOP TOMMIES
- Tak Tateoka (Waukesha, Wis. / Waukesha South) once again put up big numbers for St. Thomas Saturday afternoon, throwing for 211 yards while completing 12-21 passes.
- Hope Adebayo (Inver Grove Heights, Minn. / Simley) was once again the top rusher for the Tommies, rushing for 100 yards on 14 carries with two touchdowns. Gabriel Abel (Trenton, N.J. / Salisbury School) and Joseph Koch (Menomonee Falls, Wis. / Menomonee Falls) also rushed for touchdowns in Saturday's win.
- Colin Chase (Orange County, Calif. / St. John Bosco) was Tateoka's top receiver, tallying 113 receiving yards on three receptions. He also caught a career and season-long 74-yard touchdown reception to open the scoring for St. Thomas.
- Ryan Sever (Edina, Minn. / Benilde-St. Margaret) and Nash Tichy (Orono, Minn. / Orono) were the top tackles for the Tommies with eight a piece.
IN THE AIR!
Tateoka put up monster numbers through the first three quarters of play. The sophomore quarterback threw for 211 yards before the end of the third quarter, becoming the first Tommie quarterback to throw for 200+ yards since 2022. The last to do it was none other than Cade Saxauer, who threw for 286 yards in a 49-42 win over San Diego on October 29, 2022.
UP NEXT
After a long road stretch, St. Thomas returns to the comfort of O'Shaughnessy Stadium for its next game against the University of San Diego. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. in St. Paul,
Team Stats
UST 7, VALPO 0
UST - Chase, Colin 74 yd pass from Tateoka, Tak (Hoiland, Ben kick) 2 plays, 83 yards, TOP 0:40
UST 7, VALPO 7
VALPO - MANN 4 yd run (HAWK kick), 7 plays, 61 yards, TOP 4:10
UST 14, VALPO 7
UST - Adebayo, Hope 1 yd run (Hoiland, Ben kick), 6 plays, 45 yards, TOP 2:44
UST 21, VALPO 7
UST - Wildermuth, Jac 17 yd pass from Tateoka, Tak (Hoiland, Ben kick) 2 plays, 23 yards, TOP 0:39
UST 28, VALPO 7
UST - Abel, Gabriel 1 yd run (Hoiland, Ben kick), 2 plays, 50 yards, TOP 1:02
UST 28, VALPO 14
VALPO - COULSON 30 yd pass from TYLER (HAWK kick) 11 plays, 67 yards, TOP 3:29
UST 35, VALPO 14
UST - Adebayo, Hope 3 yd run (Hoiland, Ben kick), 4 plays, 77 yards, TOP 2:19
UST 42, VALPO 14
UST - Koch, Joseph 44 yd run (Hoiland, Ben kick), 4 plays, 64 yards, TOP 1:45
