BOX SCORE

(LEBANON, Ill., Nov. 19)—The McKendree University football team closed out its 2011 season in a big way, piling up season-high totals in points, rushing offense and total yards in a 44-20 victory Saturday at home against Quincy University at Leemon Field.
 
The Bearcats rushed for 405 yards and six touchdowns on the day on their way to a 496-yard output in total offense. McKendree finished the season with an overall record of 2-8. The Bearcats won their final two home games, closing the year with a 2-2 record at Leemon Field.
 
Two McKendree running backs posted career milestones against Quincy. Senior Chris Montgomery (Avondale, AZ/Mascoutah) (Avondale, Ariz./Mascoutah) capped his career in style, rushing for a career-high 125 yards on 21 attempts. In addition, Montgomery became the 17^th player since the Bearcat football program was revived in 1996 to rush for 1,000 yards in a career. Montgomery hit the milestone on a four-yard run midway through the third quarter. With his 125 yards, Montgomery closed out his career with 1,038 yards, good for 16^th place on the Bearcats' all-time list.
 
“Our fullbacks have been banged up all year, and we moved Chris to fullback this week,” said McKendree football coach Carl Poelker. “He took that challenge and he played like you would want a senior to play. That's a great way for him to end his career.”
 
In addition, Erik Fohne (Pocahontas, IL/Greenville) (Pocahontas, Ill./Greenville) posted a career-high total with 98 rushing yards on 18 attempts. Both Montgomery and Fohne scored twice for McKendree. The Bearcats, who had just three rushing touchdowns entering Saturday's season finale, registered six touchdowns on the ground versus the Hawks.
 
McKendree trailed 14-7 until the midway point of the second quarter, then exploded for 37 unanswered points. The Bearcats scored twice in the final seven minutes of the first half to grab a 20-14 lead at the intermission. A field goal by junior kicker Josh Pruitt (Orlando, FL/Boone) (Orlando, Fla./Boone) early in the third quarter was followed by two long fourth-quarter scoring runs to put the game out of reach.
 
"We did two things today,” said Poelker. “We didn't knock on the door, which is something we've done a lot this season. Today we kicked the (door) down. But the biggest thing we learned was when you have a team down, you keep attacking and don't let them come back. And that's a lesson we've tried to teach all year long.”
 
Quincy (4-6) grabbed a 7-0 lead on its first possession of the contest. The Hawks drove 88 yards in 11 plays, capped with a six-yard TD pass from Bobby Brenneisen to Timothy Gower. The Bearcats were able to tie the game later in the period thanks to a big play on special teams. Sophomore linebacker Javar Murphy (Chicago, IL/Marian Catholic) (Chicago, Ill./Marian Catholic) blocked Quincy punt, and senior linebacker Josh Atwood (Chatham, IL/Glenwood) (Chatham, Ill./Glenwood) covered the loose ball at the Hawks' 13-yard line.
 
Four plays later, Montgomery scored from two yards out, and Pruitt's extra point knotted the score at 7-7. But just 57 seconds later, Brenneisen threw his second touchdown of the day, a two-yard strike to Jarrod Sergent to help Quincy regain a 14-7 advantage.
 
Montgomery scored his second touchdown of the day on a one-yard burst up the middle with 7:10 left until halftime. However, the extra point was wide right, leaving the Hawks with a 14-13 lead. The Bearcats' defense forced a three-and-out from Quincy, and the McKendree offense went right back to work. Fohne capped a six-play, 75-yard drive with a three-yard TD run to give the Bearcats a 20-14 lead with just 3:11 left until intermission.
 
Fohne's four-yard scoring run on the Bearcats' first drive of the second half stretched the McKendree lead to 27-14. Pruitt booted his 39-yard field goal to start the fourth-quarter scoring for the Bearcats just over three minutes into the period. On its next possession, McKendree marched 92 yards in 10 plays, with freshman running back Ryan Herring (Fairview Heights, IL/Belleville East) (Fairview Heights, Ill./Belleville East) racing untouched up the middle for a 24-yard touchdown run to build the margin to 37-20.
 
Senior Beau Atwood (Fairmount, IL/Catlin) (Fairmount, Ill./Catlin) wrapped up the scoring for McKendree when he outran two Quincy defenders to the end zone on a 39-yard scoring burst. The Hawks scored on the final play of the game when Brenneisen connected with Sergent on a 44-yard TD pass.
 
Herring added 61 yards on just five carries for McKendree, while freshman Sedrick Spillers (Belleville, IL/Belleville West) (Belleville, Ill./Belleville West) chipped in with 47 yards on four attempts.
 
Senior quarterback Austin Fisher (Washington, IL/Washington) (Washington, Ill./Washington) completed 8-of-16 pass attempts for 91 yards in his final career game at McKendree. Fisher set 22 McKendree passing records in his four seasons with the Bearcats, including career marks for passing yards (4,332) and touchdowns (39) as well as total yards (4,327).
 
Defensively, the Bearcats limited Quincy to just 35 rushing yards on the day. Senior linebacker Brandon Nigro (New Lenox, IL/Lincoln-Way Central) (New Lenox, Ill./Lincoln-Way Central) and junior defensive back Tirell Anderson (Decatur, IL/MacArthur) (Decatur, Ill./MacArthur) each had a team-high six tackles for McKendree. Nigro finished his career as McKendree's all-time leader in tackles for both a career (295) and a season (108). Nigro set both marks in the later stages of the 2011 season.
 
Junior defensive lineman Sherrod Stancil (Naperville, IL/Waubonsie Valley) (Naperville, Ill./Waubonsie Valley) had a big day for the Bearcats with five solo tackles, including three for loss, a pass deflection and a quarterback hurry.
 
McKendree, which played this season as an independent, will play a Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) schedule in 2012. The Bearcat programs are in the midst of a transition towards NCAA Division II membership and have been accepted as members of the GLVC in all sports.