Box Score

NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The road hasn't always been a friendly place for Saint John's senior guard Joe Jaeger (Lakeville, Minn./North) and the rest of his teammates this season.

So the Johnnies knew it was important to get off to a strong start in Saturday afternoon's MIAC Northwoods Division matchup against St. Olaf at Manitou Field.

And that's just what happened as SJU - ranked as high as No. 19 in the latest D3football.com poll - scored on all three of its offensive possessions in the first quarter en route to defeating the Oles 49-10.

"After taking two losses, we know we have to make a point every week," said Jaeger, whose team improved to 6-1 in MIAC play (3-1 Northwoods) and 7-2 overall. "Especially playing on the road, we knew we had to come out with a real sense of urgency."

The Johnnies - who entered play 1-2 in road games this season, including a 38-35 upset loss to Gustavus Adolphus in their last trip away from Collegeville on Oct. 21 - scored on the game's opening possession when senior quarterback Aaron Syverson (Minnetonka, Minn.) connected with classmate Troy Feddema (St. Cloud, Minn./Tech) on a 32-yard catch-and-run for a touchdown.

Syverson then found senior tight end Alex Larson (Woodbury, Minn./East Ridge) on an 8-yard scoring strike and senior running back Devin Vouk (Sartell, Minn./Sartell-St. Stephen) scored on a 1-yard run to put SJU on top 21-0.

"It's so vital to be able to do that, especially when you're playing at somebody else's place," SJU head coach Gary Fasching '81 said. "You don't want to give them any reason to be excited. We wanted to come out and make a statement right away. I thought we did that. Our offense went right down and scored, then our defense stopped them and got the ball back in our hands."

The Oles (4-5, 3-4 MIAC, 1-3 Northwoods) did cut the gap to 21-7 on a 1-yard run by senior Jordan Embry with 12:36 remaining in the second quarter, and appeared to be driving for more on their next possession.

But senior linebacker Erik Bjork (Mahtomedi, Minn.) picked off a Theo Doran pass and returned it to the St. Olaf 48, setting up a 3-yard touchdown catch by senior Isaiah Traufler (Blaine, Minn./Totino-Grace) with 1:13 remaining to put the Johnnies on top 28-7 at halftime.

"I showed a blitz, then I kind of bailed out of it," Bjork said. "He threw the ball right to me. I don't think he saw me come under the slant."

"That was huge because if they had scored there, it's a 21-14 game and they're probably pretty excited to be back in the game," Fasching added. "So I thought (Bjork's) interception was the play of the game. That turned the tide back in our favor."

SJU continued to roll in the second half. Freshman cornerback Peyton Goettlicher (Mankato, Minn./West) recorded his second interception of the season when he picked off a Doran pass on the opening drive of the third quarter. That set up a 15-yard touchdown pass from Syverson to senior wideout Nick VanErp (Battle Lake, Minn./Ottertail Central). Then, after a blocked punt gave the Johnnies the ball back at the Oles' 30, sophomore running back Caden Wheeler (Andover, Minn.) scored on an 8-yard run to expand the SJU lead to 42-7.

Vouk then scored on a 49-yard run early in the fourth quarter to close out the scoring. The Oles added a late 23-yard field goal by senior Collin Swan, but got no closer than that.

"Our coaches do a great job of seeing when defenses switch and start dropping guys back to cover the pass like they did today," Vouk said. "We know we can run the ball too. We have some great running backs and an offensive line that has really gelled the last couple of weeks. A game like today shows that we can beat teams regardless of what defense they're in."

St. Olaf - which took Gustavus to the wire before falling 41-40 in overtime a week ago - entered Saturday ranked first in the MIAC in total offense with an average of 482 yards per game. Embry ranked seventh in the nation with an average of 135 yards rushing per game. 

But he finished with just 63 yards against the Johnnies and his team managed only 253 yards of offense in all.

"The key was stopping their run game because that's what they hang their hat on," Fasching said. "That and the play-action. I thought we did a great job doing that. Embry is the best back in the league so holding him in check was really important."

SJU recorded 27 first downs and rolled to 532 yards of offense. Syverson finished 28 of 37 passing for 313 yards and four touchdowns. Larson fell four yards shy of 100 on eight catches and Vouk totaled 96 yards on six carries.

By virtue of a 3-1 record in the Northwoods Division, SJU finished second and will travel to Moorhead to meet Skyline Division runner-up Concordia, which fell 31-14 at Bethel Saturday, as part of MIAC Championship Week on Nov. 11. The Royals will play host to Gustavus in the conference championship game, with the winner gaining the MIAC's automatic bid to the Division III playoffs.

The Johnnies, meanwhile, must beat the Cobbers, then hope their resume is strong enough to earn one of the four at-large bids when the NCAA's 32-team field is announced Nov. 12.

"We need to go up there and win, then hope for the best," Jaeger said. "All we can do is go out and play our kind of football. If we do that, hopefully we'll show enough to the committee. But we have to take care of our own business first."