(LEBANON, Ill., Oct. 10)—The McKendree University football team rallied from two deficits in the fourth quarter to post a 24-20 victory Saturday at home against the University of St. Francis (Ill.).
A pair of sophomores combined on the game-winning score for the Bearcats as Myron Hicks (Sauk Village, IL/Bloom Trail) (Sauk Village, Ill./Bloom Trail) caught a 21-yard touchdown strike from Austin Fisher (Washington, IL/Washington) (Washington, Ill./Washington) with 3:51 to play. McKendree, the No. 13 team in the latest NAIA coaches' poll, improved to 5-1 overall and stayed undefeated in Mid-States Football Association Midwest League play at 3-0.
McKendree found itself trailing 13-10 heading into the fourth quarter and appeared to be heading for a two-score deficit when the Bearcats' defense stalled a St. Francis drive midway through the fourth quarter. The Fighting Saints marched 92 yards in 13 plays before a field goal attempt by Patrick Wright sailed wide left. The Bearcats then needed just two plays to grab the lead when Fisher hit senior wide receiver Nick Fuhler (New Baden, Ill./Wesclin) (New Baden, Ill./Wesclin) with a 31-yard pass, and junior running back Tommy Gayfield (St. Louis, Mo./Mehlville) (St. Louis, Mo./Mehlville) broke free for a 49-yard touchdown run with 8:45 on the clock. Senior Jordan Fark (Nashville, Ill./Nashville) (Nashville, Ill./Nashville) booted the extra point to give McKendree a 17-13 advantage.
St. Francis (1-6, 1-3 MSFA Midwest) responded on its next drive when quarterback John Goolsby connected with Andrew Zurales on a 10-yard TD pass with 5:35 remaining to give the Fighting Saints a 20-17 advantage. Gooslby connected on 36-of-57 pass attempts in the contest for 375 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
“You have to give a lot of credit to (St. Francis),” said McKendree head coach Carl Poelker, who picked up his 99th career victory on the Bearcats' sideline. “(Goolsby) made a lot of things happen, especially in the second half, and their guys made adjustments. We kept fighting back, and it showed in that fourth quarter. Our guys answered the call.”
The Bearcats took the ensuing kickoff and needed just four plays to take the lead for good. After a penalty, Fisher completed a 31-yard pass down the middle to Hicks at the St. Francis 41-yard line. Two plays later, Fisher was flushed out of the pocket and scrambled down the left side for a 20-yard gain down to the Fighting Saints' 21. On the next play, Fisher found Hicks wide open at the five-yard line, and Hicks scampered into the end zone with the go-ahead touchdown.
“Those two (Fisher and Hicks) were big in that drive,” said Poelker. “Myron let one slip through his hands in the first half, but he came back and made a few big catches in the second half, especially on that scoring drive. Austin is really at his best when he gets out of the pocket and can see the whole field. He can make things happen at that point.”
McKendree's defense then forced St. Francis to turn the ball over on downs with just over two minutes to play, and the Bearcats were able to grind out a first down to run out the clock. Both teams combined for nearly half of the total yardage in the contest during the final 15 minutes of play. McKendree and St. Francis posted 362 of the game's 817 yards of total offense in the fourth quarter.
Fisher was 12-of-19 for 196 yards in the contest. That pushed the Bearcats' season total to 975 passing yards, which establishes a new season record. McKendree broke the old mark of 922 yards on Fuhler's 31-yard catch just ahead of Gayfield's scoring burst. Junior tight end Byron Gettis (Cahokia, Ill./Cahokia) (Cahokia, Ill./Cahokia) had four receptions for 43 yards, while Hicks caught three balls for 72 yards.
Senior fullback Joe Beimfohr (Nashville, Ill./Nashville) (Nashville, Ill./Nashville) rushed for a game-high 90 yards on 22 carries. His 19-yard touchdown run with 5:29 left in the first quarter gave McKendree a 7-3 lead. St. Francis kicker Patrick Wright kicked his second 42-yard field goal of the game early in the second quarter to bring the Fighting Saints within 7-6 before Fark nailed a season-long 43-yarder with 3:24 left before halftime to extend the Bearcats' margin back to 10-6.
Goolsby gave the Fighting Saints their first lead of the second half when he hit Ponce Palmer with a 33-yard touchdown pass with just under two minutes remaining in the third quarter. Goolsby's favorite target on the day was Jason Fiske, who had 14 catches for 161 yards, while Mike Anthony grabbed 11 passes for 58 yards out of the backfield for St. Francis.
Senior defensive back Luke Arnold (Bloomington, Ind./Edgewood) (Bloomington, Ind./Edgewood) led the McKendree defense with nine tackles, while junior defensive back Derrick Quals (North Hills, Calif./Chaminade) (North Hills, Calif./Chaminade) was in on eight tackles with two pass break-ups.
McKendree will look to keep its winning streak intact next Saturday as it hosts Waldorf College for a Homecoming contest at Leemon Field. Kickoff for the MSFA Midwest League contest is set for 1:30 p.m.
-McK-
