Saints Fall To St. Thomas 48-2

Nov 19, 2011

Northland Sports Online

Third-ranked University of St. Thomas showed its dominance on Saturday on a snow-covered field at O’Shaughnessy Stadium on Saturday, defeating the St. Scholastica football team in a NCAA Division III First Round Playoff Game 48-2.

CSS’s first playoff points came in the same fashion they got their first points as a program and that was on a safety. On the opening kickoff, the Tommies muffed the kick and the ball rolled into the end zone and where they were tackled for the safety to make it 2-0 CSS 12 seconds into the game.

After the Saints were forced to punt, the Tommies proceeded to move the ball down the field, mostly on the running of Colin Tobin, and went out in front on a Tobin 2-yard touchdown run to make it 6-2 after the 2-point conversion attempt failed.

The Saints were able to get a first down on their next possession after a St. Thomas facemask call, but that would be their only first down of the half as the Tommies defense clamped down and held CSS to 30 yards of total offense in the half.

The CSS defense was able to hold its own, holding the Tommies to punts on their next three possessions. Unfortunately, with 5:29 left in the second quarter on a fourth-and-goal at the CSS 1-yard-line, Tommies quarterback Dakota Tracy plunged into the end zone to make it 13-2.

After another Saints three-and-out, the Tommies scored right before the half on a Tobin 8-yard run to make it 20-2 at the half.

It was all St. Thomas in the second half, scoring touchdowns on its first four possessions to blow the game wide open. On two of the possessions, the Tommies converted on fourth down to keep the drive alive.

With 2:46 left in the third quarter, the Saints would finally get a first down without the aid of a St. Thomas penalty. CSS finished with just four first downs in the game as the Tommies rolled into the second round with a 48-2 win. The loss ends CSS’s 14-game winning streak, third-best in Division III.

The Saints were held to just 73 yards of total offense. This is the first time in program’s four years it has been held to less than 100 yards of total offense. St. Thomas, who is ranked the second-best rushing defense in the nation, lived up to the billing, holding the Saints to 14 yards on the ground.

Alex Thiry (Cambridge, Minn. /Braham HS (Minn.-Duluth)) was 9-of-21 for 59 yards and had two interceptions. Today’s game dropped Thiry below NCAA record for pass efficiency in a season as he dropped to a rating of 218.1 for the season. Thiry finishes with 37 touchdown passes and three interceptions for the season.

For the Tommies, Colin Tobin ran for a career-high 206 yards on 31 carries. Fritz Waldvogel had seven receptions for 75 yards and Dakota Tracy threw for 125 yards. The Tommies will host Monmouth College (Ill.) next Saturday in a second round playoff game.

Sean Graskey (Superior, Wis. /Superior HS) led the Saints defense in his final game, recording 12 tackles, nine of which were solo. He also had a tackle for a loss. Alec French (Isanti, Minn. /St. Francis HS) and Jake Turkowski (Superior, Wis. /Superior HS) each added 10 tackles.

The Saints, who made the playoffs in just their fourth season, will say goodbye to 18 seniors, 16 of which were part of the inaugural recruiting class. However, the Saints hope to be back in the NCAA playoffs next season, but will have to replace key positions on the offensive side of the ball and at the linebacker position on defense.

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