DECORAH, Iowa – A pair of big plays on offense and a strong defensive effort led the St. Olaf College football team to a 19-7 non-conference road victory over Luther College on Saturday afternoon at Carlson Stadium.
Junior Jordan Embry broke loose for a 94-yard touchdown run right before halftime, senior Gabe Alada caught a 60-yard touchdown, and the St. Olaf (1-1) defense held Luther (0-2) scoreless after its first possession, as the Oles picked up their first win of the season. Embry ran for a career-high 170 yards on 27 carries for St. Olaf and his 94-yard score was the longest run by an Ole since a 94-yard touchdown run by Leon Clark '12 against Hamline on Nov. 14, 2009.
St. Olaf had 427 yards of offense in the win, including 178 yards on the ground, and limited Luther to one yard rushing on 21 attempts. Senior Brandon Foster had a team-high six tackles for the Oles and first year Aresnio Black added his first collegiate interception and forced fumble.
Coming off his first-career 300-yard passing performance, senior Lars Prestemon was 17-for-29 for 249 yards with one touchdown and one interception for St. Olaf. Prestemon connected with Alada, who finished with three catches for 84 yards, for a 60-yard catch-and-run touchdown early in the third quarter.
The Oles opened the scoring on the first possession of the game on a 28-yard field goal by sophomore Collin Swan. Prestemon found junior Payton Schott for a pair of first-down connections early in the drive, which stalled in the red zone after a holding penalty.
Luther responded with a five-play, 74-yard drive to take a 7-3 lead with 5:06 remaining in the first quarter when Vershon Brooks scored from three yards out on the ground. The drive included a 56-yard third-down pass from Michael Lorento to Andre Atkins, who had eight receptions for 145 yards for the Norse.
On its first possession of the second quarter, St. Olaf got another field goal from Swan to cut its deficit to a single point, 7-6, as Swan connected from 21 yards out. The Oles again marched the ball inside the red zone, getting as close as the three-yard line, before having to settle for a field goal after a holding penalty.
Late in the half, Luther threatened to build on its one-point lead, but the St. Olaf defense made a play right at the goal line to keep it a 7-6 game. After Lorento found Atkins for a 21-yard reception, the Oles' defense stripped and recovered the ball with Atkins fighting to get into the end zone with 1:19 left in the half. Three plays later, Embry broke loose for a 94-yard touchdown run on a third-and-five play to help St. Olaf take a 12-7 halftime lead after the two-point conversion was unsuccessful.
The only scoring of the second half was the 60-yard touchdown from Prestemon to Alada four minutes into the third quarter. The score came after Prestemon found sophomore Derek Hansen for a 25-yard gain on a third-and-13 play.
St. Olaf's defense took care of the rest, holding Luther to 81 yards of offense in the second half. For the second week in a row, the Oles won the time of possession battle, controlling the ball for 36:47 thanks, in part, to going 3-for-4 on fourth down conversions. The win was St. Olaf's third in a row in the series, which dates back 100 years to 1921.
After a bye week, St. Olaf returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 25 when Macalester visits Klein Field at Manitou for a 1 p.m. kickoff. The game will be the first Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) contest for the Scots after rejoining the conference this year.
Big plays, defense lead St. Olaf to road win over Luther
/seasons/2021/boxscores/20210911_qrq7.xml
2021
St. Olaf
19
Luther
7
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Olaf (1-1) | 3 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 19 |
| Luther (0-2) | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
Sep 11, 2021