NORTHFIELD, Minn. — The Augsburg University football team was edged 23-21 at St. Olaf in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest on Saturday at Klein Field at Manitou.
Caden Rodkewich tied the game with a touchdown pass to
Iggie Cooper with 1:27 left in the fourth quarter, but the Oles were able to work their way down the field and hit the game-winning field goal as time expired. The Auggies finished with 297 passing yards and three passing touchdowns, but were held to 6 rushing yards and lost four fumbles.
THE BASICS
SCORE: St. Olaf 23, Augsburg 21
LOCATION: Klein Field at Manitou, Northfield, Minn.
RECORDS: Augsburg 1-3 overall (1-2 MIAC), St. Olaf 1-3 overall (1-2 MIAC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Auggies' defense produced the first stop of the first quarter, holding the Oles to 6 yards on their opening possession before a punt pinned the Auggies at their own 3. Rodkewich moved the offense out of the shadow of the goal line with a 10-yard completion to
Dominic Webster for the Auggies' lone first down of the quarter, but the drive ended when the Oles blocked an
Avery Oseth punt and took over at the Auggies' 1. Bryon Sauvy scored on a 1-yard run and the extra point made it 7-0 with 7:55 left. The Auggies answered with
Rashad Sherwood's 18-yard kickoff return and later got a 60-yard punt from Oseth after a stalled drive, but the offense finished the quarter with two sacks allowed, one lost fumble and an 0-for-3 mark on third down. The Oles were at the Auggies' 2 when the first quarter ended, with the Auggies trailing 7-0.
The clearest answer came late in the second quarter, when Rodkewich led an eight-play, 90-yard drive and hit
Iggie Cooper for gains of 31 and 28 yards, the second a touchdown that helped cut the Oles' lead to 17-7 after
Kevin Kargozar's extra point. Rodkewich's performance in this game saw him reach seven total passing touchdowns for the season, including the three from this game. Earlier, the Auggies faced a 14-0 deficit after a fourth-down Oles touchdown, then had a muffed punt recovered by the Oles at the Auggies' 20 before the defense limited the possession to Patty Gardner's 32-yard field goal. The Auggies' defense also created negative plays in the quarter, including
Kevin Toe's forced fumble and shared tackle for loss with
Isaiah Deloach, plus stops by Sherwood and
RJ Chakolis behind the line. Sherwood recorded nine tackles, exceeding his season average of 5.0. After Cooper's touchdown, Kargozar's kickoff was muffed and Sherwood recovered at the Oles' 34, but the short-field chance ended on a sack and fumble. The Oles ran out the remaining time after the Auggies used three timeouts, and the teams went to halftime with the Auggies trailing 17-7.
After the Oles' field goal made it 20-7 in the third quarter, Cooper's 37-yard kickoff return set up a 57-yard touchdown drive that brought the score to 20-14. Rodkewich hit Cooper for 42 yards on the drive, then found
CJ Ritchie for a 12-yard touchdown on fourth-and-5 before Kargozar added the extra point. Rodkewich achieved a season-high of three pass touchdowns. Earlier, the Auggies' defense limited an Oles red-zone trip to Patty Gardner's 25-yard field goal after the home team reached the Auggies' 8. The Oles later drove inside the Auggies' 20 again, but
Jamir Horton intercepted Luke Crosby at the Auggies' 9 and returned it 7 yards with 48 seconds left. Rodkewich then completed a 10-yard pass to Ritchie on the final play of the quarter, with the Auggies entering the fourth down 20-14.
The Auggies rallied into a 21-20 lead in the final 90 seconds, but the Oles answered with a 20-yard field goal at 0:00 to hand the Auggies a 23-21 loss. Earlier, the Auggies moved from their 29 to the Oles' 43 before an interception, then crossed midfield again on their next possession before a completed third-down pass ended with a lost fumble. The Auggies' defense forced a punt after the interception and later got the ball back at its own 34 on a fourth-down incompletion with 3:53 left and the score 20-14. Rodkewich then led a 10-play, 66-yard drive, converting with his legs on third-and-3 and completing passes to
Ben Davis,
Amir Allah and Cooper before finding Cooper for a 17-yard touchdown with 1:27 remaining, and Kargozar's extra point put the Auggies in front. Rodkewich passed for 297 yards, exceeding his season average of 126.33.
AUGSBURG TOP PERFORMERS
•
Iggie Cooper: Season-high 8 receptions for 149 yards, 2 touchdown catches
•
Caden Rodkewich: Completed 25 of 41 passes for 297 yards, 3 touchdown passes
•
CJ Ritchie: 7 receptions for 45 yards, 1 touchdown catch
•
Daniel Fitzgerald-Rosa: Season-high 11 total tackles
•
Rashad Sherwood: 9 total tackles, 1 fumble recovery
•
RJ Chakolis: Recorded 8 or more tackles in 4 straight games.
ST. OLAF TOP PERFORMERS
• Taevin Pribyl: 121 receiving yards on 3 receptions
• Bryon Sauvy: 89 rushing yards on 29 carries, 1 rushing touchdown
• Tytan Small: 5 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery
• Patty Gardner: 3-for-3 on field goals with a long of 32 yards, 2-for-2 on PATs
• Luke Crosby: Completed 9 of 18 passes for 196 yards, 1 rushing touchdown
UP NEXT
The Auggies travel to Arden Hills, Minn., to face Bethel University on Saturday, Oct. 10. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Royal Stadium.
