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-Martin, Thompson, King & Johnson (1:13)

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Saint John's erased a four-point halftime deficit by outscoring Gustavus Adolphus 21-3 in the second half to post a 31-17 victory in the Johnnies' home finale Oct. 27.

SJU (4-4, 2-4 MIAC) outgained the Gusties 226-116 in the second half and did not commit a turnover in the game's final 30 minutes. The Johnnie defense, meanwhile, forced four turnovers and totaled 13 tackles for a loss and seven sacks in the game. Six of the seven sacks came in the second half, one of which forced a fumble and led to the game-clinching touchdown drive.

Senior Jimmie Mattson (Eau Claire, Wis./Memorial) put SJU on the scoreboard with a 32-yard field goal at the 10:44 mark of the opening quarter. Freshman Trevor Warner's (Murrieta, Calif./Vista Murrieta) third interception of the year, on third-and-seven, set up the scoring drive.

Freshman quarterback Nick Martin (Plymouth, Minn./Wayzata) connected with senior Tyson Euerle (St. Cloud, Minn./Tech) for a six-yard touchdown pass 1:16 into the second quarter to make it 10-0.

The Gusties (2-6, 1-5 MIAC) took a 14-10 lead into halftime thanks to a pair of touchdown passes from Muresuk Mena to Michael Hintze. The second touchdown was a five-yard pass-and-catch with 23 seconds left in the second quarter.

Martin opened the second half by capping a six-play, 86-yard scoring drive with a 38-yard touchdown run to give the lead back to SJU. He gained 103 yards on nine carries, but finished with 83 yards on the ground due to a loss of 20 yards on three sacks.

Tom Huepenbecker tied the game at 17-17 with a 32-yard field goal halfway through the third quarter.

After an exchange of punts, Martin directed the Johnnies on a 64-yard scoring drive that ended on a three-yard touchdown run from junior running back Colin Moynihan (Edina, Minn.). The Johnnies took advantage of the big play on a pair of third-and-short situations on the drive. Martin hit senior tight end Scott Ramey (Baxter, Minn./Brainerd) for a 16-yard gain on third-and-three, and then connected with junior running back Jake Essler (New London, Minn./New London-Spicer) for a 24-yard gain on third-and-three. Moynihan took it over for what proved to be the game-winning score two plays later.

Mena hit Jordan Rudenick for a 46-yard gain on the first play of the Gusties' ensuing drive, but sophomore linebacker Maze Thompson (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View) blocked Huepenbecker's 30-yard field-goal attempt. The block was the Johnnies' first of an opponent field goal since Oct. 25, 2008 (Bobby Klint at St. Olaf).

SJU was held to a three-and-out, but the Johnnie defense came through once again. Seniors Joe Donner (Delafield, Wis./Kettle Moraine) and Jake King (Mounds View, Minn./Totino-Grace) sacked Mena on third-and-18 and forced a fumble, where it was recovered by junior Nate Blenker (Albany, Minn.) on the GAC 34. Essler ended the scoring with a six-yard touchdown run six plays later.

In addition to his team-leading 83 yards rushing, Martin ended the afternoon 13 of 18 passing for 121 yards. Senior Stephen Johnson (Mahtomedi, Minn.) added 75 yards on 20 carries. Essler led the receiving corps with 49 yards on three catches, while senior tight end Wade Powers (Hawick, Minn./New London-Spicer) caught four passes for 34 yards before leaving the game due to injury late in the second quarter.

Thompson led the SJU defense with 12 tackles (nine solo), including three tackles for a loss and one sack. He also had the blocked field goal and forced a fumble in the contest. King collected 10 tackles (four solo) with two tackles for a loss, 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble of his own.

Mena finished 16 of 26 passing for 190 yards and -21 yards on 20 carries. Eddie Ramos led GAC with 59 yards on two carries, while Hintze added 136 yards from scrimmage (91 receiving, 47 rushing). Joe Haas totaled 17 tackles (seven solo) and a fumble recovery.

The teams combined for a 7-for-29 showing (24.1 percent) on third down and 16 penalties in the game.

The Johnnies ended with a 334-296 edge in total offense, including 213 rushing yards (156 in the second half alone).

With the win, SJU head coach John Gagliardi improves to 488-137-11 (.776) in 64 seasons overall and 464-131-10 (.775) in 60 seasons at SJU.

SJU is now 45-31-3 all-time against GAC, including a 41-17-3 record under the direction of Gagliardi. The Johnnies have now won 25 of the last 26 meetings, including 10 of the last 11 in Collegeville.

The Johnnies travel to take on Hamline for a 1 p.m. kickoff next Saturday, Nov. 3, at Klas Field in St. Paul.