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-Bruns & Graboski (0:52)

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Saint John's answered an early 7-0 deficit with 47 consecutive points en route to a 47-14 win over Carleton on Saturday, Oct. 29, in Collegeville.

Senior wide receiver Brent Graboski (Woodbury, Minn.) caught five passes for 216 yards and two touchdowns, 10 yards shy of the school record set by Rick Bell in 1982 (226 yards vs. St. Cloud State). Sophomore Connor Bruns (Baltimore, Md./Loyola Blakefield) ended the day 10 of 16 passing, including four collective drops from his receivers, for 242 yards and two touchdowns. He also added another touchdown on the ground.

Following a three-and-out on SJU's first offensive possession, Carleton's Andy Zweber capped a 10-play, 67-yard scoring drive with a 25-yard touchdown run.

On the Johnnies' ensuing drive, Bruns connected with Graboski for a 52-yard gain on third-and-nine, all the way down to the Carleton 16. SJU, however, sputtered after a four-yard gain on first down and settled for a 29-yard field goal from junior kicker Jimmie Mattson (Eau Claire, Wis./Memorial) to cut the deficit to 7-3.

The Bruns-to-Graboski connection came through once again on third down, this time for 44 yards, to end the first quarter. Junior running back Stephen Johnson (Mahtomedi, Minn.) scampered for a 31-yard touchdown run, the Johnnies' longest rush of the season, on the very next play to give SJU (4-4, 3-3 MIAC) a 10-7 lead. The score capped a five-play, 97-yard scoring drive.

With coverage migrating to Graboski's side, Bruns hit senior wide receiver Sam Pederson (La Crosse, Wis./Aquinas) for gains of five, 24 and 35 yards on the Johnnies' next drive. The 35-yard gain brought the ball to the Knights' seven-yard line, where Bruns took it over from on the next play.

Mattson added his second field goal of the game, this time from 33 yards out, to give SJU a 20-7 lead at the half. He is now a perfect six of six on the season and 13-for-13 in his SJU career.

SJU scored touchdowns on each of its first four possessions of the second half. Junior tight end Taylor Freetly (Kerkhoven, Minn./Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg) caught a 26-yard touchdown pass from Bruns with 9:18 left in the third quarter. On the Johnnies' next offensive play, junior tight end Wade Powers hit Graboski for a 70-yard touchdown on a trick play. The pass is the second longest non-quarterback touchdown pass in school history. A low snap thwarted Mattson's extra-point attempt.

Following a Carleton fumble, Bruns threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to Graboski to make it 40-7 in favor of the Johnnies. The play ended Bruns' afternoon.

Junior quarterback John Ries (Plymouth, Minn./Wayzata) took over and led the Johnnies on a seven-play, 49-yard scoring drive that ended on an 18-yard touchdown pass from Ries to Pederson on third-and-16.

Zweber ended the scoring with a four-yard touchdown run for Carleton (2-6, 1-5 MIAC) with 10:02 left in the fourth quarter.

Johnson led SJU with 57 yards on nine carries, while junior tailback Harry Awe (St. Paul, Minn./Minnehaha Academy) added 41 yards on four attempts. Pederson finished with five catches for 93 yards to surpass the 1,000-yard mark for his career. Junior defensive back Ian Goldsmith (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View) and freshman linebacker Andrew Rose (Stillwater, Minn.) led the SJU defense with seven tackles apiece. Senior Evan Cobb (Becker, Minn.), junior Connor Grill (Plymouth, Minn./Wayzata) and freshman Maze Thompson (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View) each added a sack. Senior safety Andrew Rotschafer (Eden Prairie, Minn.) had a 38-yard interception return for a touchdown called back due to a roughing-the-quarterback penalty.

Jon Lien led the Knights' ground game with 85 yards on 19 carries, while Andy Zweber totaled 65 yards and two scores on nine attempts. Quarterback Danny Shields was 12 of 18 passing for 79 yards.

SJU out-gained Carleton 495-286, including a 371-79 advantage through the air.

The Johnnies play host to nationally-ranked St. Olaf for the home finale next Saturday, Nov. 5. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Clemens Stadium in Collegeville.

Notes: Graboski's 216 receiving yards are the most since Ben Vanderheyden's 195 against Hamline on Oct. 11, 2008…Graboski was one yard shy of the school record for a wide receiver, 217 yards by Adam Herbst against St. Thomas (at the Metrodome) on Nov. 7, 1997…Powers' 70-yard touchdown pass to Graboski is the first touchdown pass by an SJU tight end since Dan Grant tossed a 10-yard strike to Joe Henry in the 38-10 win over Carleton 23 years ago to the day (Oct. 29, 1988)…the school record for a non-quarterback pass is 87 yards (running back Mike Lofboom to Kyle Gearman at Concordia on Sept. 23, 2006)…SJU is now 29-0 all-time against Carleton.