St. John’s trailed 7-3 at the half Saturday but scored four consecutive touchdowns to win its regular-season closer 31-7 over Concordia at Moorhead.
The Johnnies (7-1 MIAC, 9-1 overall) must wait for NCAA Division III playoff pairings to come out at 5 p.m. Sunday to find out if their season will continue.
MIAC STANDINGS
| St. Thomas | 8-0 | 10-0 |
| St. John’s | 7-1 | 9-1 |
| Concordia | 6-2 | 7-3 |
| Bethel | 5-3 | 5-5 |
| Hamline | 3-5 | 5-5 |
| Gustavus | 3-5 | 5-5 |
| Augsburg | 2-6 | 2-6 |
| St. Olaf | 1-7 | 2-8 |
| Carleton | 1-7 | 1-9 |
MIAC SCOREBOARD
- St. John’s 31, Concordia 7
- Bethel 17, Hamline 14
- Gustavus 38, Carleton 21
- St. Thomas 73, St. Olaf 7
- END OF REGULAR SEASON
St. John’s posted its 450th MIAC victory (450-177-22).
The Johnnies scored 21 points in 4 minutes 14 seconds of the fourth quarter and out-gained Concordia (6-2, 7-3) 298 yards to 73 in the second half. The Cobbers earned only six first downs and totaled 179 yards, 145 rushing.
Running back Dusty Krueger rushed for 173 yards on 26 carries, including an 80-yard touchdown run to put St. John’s ahead 24-7 lead with 4:48 to play. Krueger was the first Johnnie to rush for 100 yards this season. No one had gained 100 yards rushing against Concordia since 2002.
Quarterback Ben Alvord completed 10 of 14 passes for 136 and two touchowns in the fourth quarter. He hit tight end Jared Streit with a 32-yard scoring strike with 6:11 remaining and hit Evan Clark for a 28-yard touchdown play on fourth down with 1:57 remaining.
Bethel 17, Hamline 14
Blake Hottle’s 31-yard field goal with 2:30 to play in the fourth quarter was the difference for Bethel (5-3, 5-5) in a season-ending victory at Hamline (3-5, 5-5).
Hamline held a 7-6 lead after Justice Spriggs hit favorite target Nick Kampa for a 7-yard touchdown pass play, and Kale Wurdeman added the extra-point kick with 6:16 to play in the second quarter. The Hamline score answered a 1-yard touchdown run from Bethel quarterback Jake Marsh with a little more than a minute gone fromt the game.
Bethel retook the lead with 46 seconds remaining in the first half when Gunnar Bloom caught an 8-yard scoring pass from Marsh, who also passed for the two-point conversion, making it 14-7 Royals.
After Hottle’s field goal, Hamline drove 73 yards on 10 plays, ending in a 3-yard touchdown pass from Spriggs to Kampa with 42 seconds to play.
Bethel covered the ensuing on-side kick, ending Hamline’s chances.
Gustavus 38, Carleton 28
Luke Martinez rushed 29 times for 162 yards and a touchdown, and Jordan Kahlow and Leeland Lauti returned interceptions for touchdowns in the fourth quarter to seal the victory for Gustavus (3-5, 5-5) at Carleton (1-8, 1-9).
Carleton’s Zach Creighton caught two touchdown passes from Ethan Trujillo, who completed 22 of 42 passes for 260 yards, but with four interceptions.