St. John’s players hoist the MIAC championship trophy after cruising 51-0 over Hamline on Saturday. The Johnnies finished the season unbeaten at 9-0. (Jennifer McNelly/gojohnnies.com)
MIAC standings
| St. John’s | 8-0 | 9-0 |
| St. Thomas | 6-1 | 8-1 |
| Bethel | 6-1 | 8-1 |
| Gustavus | 4-3 | 5-4 |
| Concordia | 3-4 | 4-5 |
| St. Olaf | 3-4 | 5-4 |
| Carleton | 2-5 | 3-6 |
| Augsburg | 0-7 | 2-7 |
| Hamline | 0-7 | 0-9 |
MIAC SCOREBOARD
Saturday
- St. Thomas 14, Gustavus 13
- Concordia 21, St. Olaf 10
- St. John’s 51, Hamline 0
- Bethel 75, Augsburg 0
Saturday, Nov. 10
- St. Thomas at Bethel, 1:10 p.m.
- Carleton at Concordia, 1 p.m.
- Gustavus at St. Olaf, 1 p.m.
- Augsburg at Hamline, 1 p.m.
- Thomas More at St. John’s, 1 p.m.
St. John’s nailed down the 2018 MIAC football title Saturday with a 51-0 drubbing of Hamline at Collegeville.
The Johnnies (8-0 MIAC, 9-0 overall) had gained the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs a week earlier with a victory over Concordia. St. John’s made postseason play for the 29th time, 25th in NCAA D3, and for the fifth year in a row.
St. John’s scored all 51 points in the first half. The Johnnies outgained Hamline (0-7, 0-9) 364 yards to 34 in the first half and 470-98 for the day.
Max Jackson opened the scoring by returning a punt 60 yards with 11:02 remaining in the first quarter.
Running back Adam Essler gained only 7 yards rushing and 29 yards as a receiver, but he scored three touchdowns, two on passes from quarterback Jackson Erdmann in the first quarter.
Running back Kai Barber gained 102 yards on four tries, including a 57-yard touchdown run with 4:14 left in the first quarter.
Erdmann, who left the game before the first half ended, completed 10 of 15 passes for 160 yards and three touchdowns. He has passed for 27 scores, tops in the MIAC.
Bethel running back Brady Bomsta skirts Augsburg’s left end on Saturday during the Royals’ 75-0 home victory. (Carl Schmulund/athletics.bethel.edu)
Bethel 75, Augsburg 0
Bethel (6-1, 8-1) scored touchdowns the first nine times it had the ball while rollihg upi 675 yards of offense, setting up a home-field showdown next Saturday with St. Thomas for second place in the MIAC and a potential NCAA Division III playoff spot.
Bethel set a school record for points scored, one more point than the Royals posted in a 1999 victory over Macalester.
Bethel held a 26-0 lead after the first quarter and upped the margin to 47-0 at the half before scoring 28 more points in the second half, just seven in the fourth quarter. The lone touchdown in the fourth quarter came from freshman running back Sid Boros when the Becker, Minnesota native took a handoff and bounced the run outside, outpacing the entire Auggie defense to the endzone for an 82-yard touchdown run.
Eight Bethel players scored touchdowns, with Sam Gibas, Brady Bomsta and Drew Larsen getting two apiece.
Quarterback Jaran Roste completed 11 of 17 passes for 225 yards, his best at Bethel, and three scores.
Bethel gained 422 yards rushing on 47 carries, 9 yards a try. Gibas ran for 124 yards on six attempts, including touchdown runs of 60 yards and 17 yards in the first quarter.
Bethel intercepted for Augsburg (0-7, 2-7) passes; Matt Feldick and Drew Ragsdale led the Royals with eight tackles each.
Bethel and St. Thomas meet next Saturday in Arden Hills with an at-large playoff berth on the line. Bethel is ranked No. 4 and St. Thomas No. 7 in the NCAA West Region. Bethel two of the past three games when St. Thomas has played in Arden Hills.
Concordia 21, St. Olaf 10
Rylie Sheridan ran back a kickoff 95 yards in the third quarter to put Concordia ahead for good in a 21-10 victory ofer St. Olaf on Saturday at Northfield.
St. Olaf (3-4 MIAC, 5-4 overall) took a 10-7 lead on Gonzalo Pirela’s 30-yard field goal wotj 8:47 to go in the third quarter. Sheridan took the ensuing kickoff all the way to give Concordia (3-4, 4-5) a 14-10 lead. Quaterback Blake Kragnes added a 2-yard touchdown run 47 seconds into the fourth quarter, sealing the victory.
Concordia held the Oles to 62 yards rushing while gaining 197 yards on the ground, led by Dane Ringquist with 88 yards and Kragnes with 68 yards.
St. Olaf quarterback Ricardo Johnson III completed 12 of 24 for 176 yards and a touchdown. Gabe Alada caught four of Johnson’s passes for 104 yards and a touchdown.
Concordia’s Dan Johnson sacked Johnson twice on the game’s first drive, the second resulting in a fumble that gave Concordia the ball on the St. Olaf 16 yard line.
Three plays later, Sheridan took it in from 10 yards to give Concordia a 7-0 lead with 12:06 remaining in the period.
With just two seconds to play in the first half, Johnson connected with Alada on the left sideline for a 60-yard catch and run score, making it 7-7 at the intermission.
After stopping Concordia on downs, St. Olaf took the ball to the Cobber 13-yard line. Johnson hitting Alada for 15 yards, and the Cobbers chipped in with a pass-interference penalty, setting up Pirela’s kick.