Indianapolis – The 11th-ranked Marian University football team stifled the high-powered Taylor offense in a 26-6 win over the Trojans at Ascension St. Vincent Field on Saturday afternoon.
TEAM STATISTICS
- Marian out-gained Taylor 332-235
- The Knights held the edge in rushing yards, 175-173
- MU passed for 157 yards to TU's 152
- The Trojans gained 20 first downs; Marian picked up 18 first downs
- The Knights led in time of possession, 33:13 to 26:47
- MU converted 8 of 15 third downs, while limiting the Trojans to 5-for-16 on third downs and 1-for-6 on fourth downs
- Both teams recorded one sack
- The Knights recorded the lone takeaway of the game, an interception
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
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Jake Dunn went 10-for-18 for 153 yards
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RJ Griffin rushed and threw for a touchdown
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Avery Garlock took a team-high 11 carries for 58 yards
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Uriah Buchanan scored another touchdown on the ground
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Charles Vaden hauled in a team-best five catches for 85 yards
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Matthias Pilkington caught the touchdown pass
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Wyatt Woodall logged a team-best 12 tackles with two for loss
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Jeivyair Horton intercepted a pass and returned it 58 yards
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Dean Mason booted three punts for a 44-yard average while allowing no returns
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Ashton Vogel converted both of his field goal attempts and went 2-for-3 on PATs
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST QUARTER
- Marian took the opening drive and Dunn's 22-yard rush immediately set up the Knights in enemy territory
- An offsides penalty extended the drive and Marian capitalized, scoring on Buchanan's one-yard TD plunge; the PAT was no good, leaving Marian a 6-0 lead
- After three punts, a 26-yard Vaden reception on third down and a 20-yard Griffin rush set up the Knights at Taylor's doorstep
- Griffin's four-yard touchdown pass to Pilkington on third down and the ensuing PAT pushed MU's lead to 13-0
SECOND QUARTER
- Taylor drove the ball into Marian territory on their next drive that spanned the opening quarters, but the Knights stuffed the Trojans on fourth down
- Mason downed a punt at the Taylor seven-yard line; when the Knights forced a punt, MU took advantage of the short field and cashed in on Vogel's 27-yard field goal to go ahead 16-0
- Taylor was once again stuffed on a 4th & 1 in Marian territory on a rush of no gain as the Knights took their lead into the halftime locker room
THIRD QUARTER
- The Trojans went for it on fourth down from their own 30-yard line and lost yards on a rush, giving Marian excellent field position
- The Knights settled for a 42-yard field goal, pushing the advantage to 19-0
- Taylor once again was stopped on a fourth down on their next drive, as the Knights defense continued to dominate
- The Trojans drove into the MU red zone, but Alex Amburgy's pass was intercepted by Horton in the end zone and returned 58 yards all the way into Taylor territory
FOURTH QUARTER
- Griffin ran the ball into the end zone from seven yards out on the first play of the fourth quarter, extending the lead to 26-0
- The Knights stepped up for its fifth stop on fourth down of the day deep into Marian's end
- Marian ate up over nine minutes of game clock on its next drive, turning the ball over inside Taylor's five-yard line
- The Trojans drove 96 yards on its next drive, scoring on the final play of the game to avoid the shutout
UP NEXT
- Marian returns home to Ascension St. Vincent Field on Saturday, hosting third-ranked Indiana Wesleyan over Homecoming at 1:05 p.m.
