camp
Ann Leppke
17
Winner Quincy QU 4-3 , 2-2
7
Saint Joseph's (IN) SJC 5-2 , 2-2
Winner
Quincy QU
4-3 , 2-2
17
Final
7
Saint Joseph's (IN) SJC
5-2 , 2-2
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
QU Quincy 0 0 0 17 17
SJC Saint Joseph's (IN) 7 0 0 0 7

Game Recap: Football | | Brendan Bittner

Defense, Late Scores Lift Hawks To Signature Win

QUINCY, Ill. – The Quincy University football team earned a signature win on Saturday (Oct. 18), scoring 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to knock off Saint Joseph's at Alumni Stadium in Rensselaer, Ind., 17-7.
 
The win pushed the Hawks' record to 4-3 on the season and 2-2 in Great Lakes Valley Conference play. The four wins are the most in the three-year tenure of head coach Tom Pajic with four games still to play in 2014.
 
The Pumas (5-2, 2-2 GLVC) opened the game with a four-play, 56-yard drive capped by a 24-yard touchdown pass from Tate Borlik to Addi Dellinger that gave the hosts a 7-0 lead just one minute, 40 seconds into the game.
 
Both teams' offenses had to grind from there as field conditions became progressively sloppier from heavy rains during the morning.
 
Neither team was able to move the ball with much success throughout the rest of the first half. The Hawks lost two fumbles in the second quarter, including one that stopped a drive at the SJC 35-yard line.
 
The offense was able to kick it in gear after halftime and the defense came up big as the Pumas ran just seven plays and gained only 17 yards in the third quarter. The Hawks sustained a 16-play drive that chewed up seven minutes, 59 seconds and carried into the fourth quarter, but redshirt-freshman running back Chris Harris (Springfield, Ill./Sacred Heart Griffin) lost Quincy's third fumble of the day, giving the Pumas the ball at their own 6-yard line.
 
The defense continued its dominance and forced a quick three-and-out to give the ball back to the in-rhythm offense. Redshirt-junior quarterback Nick Lonergan (Jacksonville, Ill.) hit freshman wide receiver Kody Wood (Jacksonville, Ill.) on a 64-yard catch-and-run that set up the Hawks in the red zone. Three plays later, Lonergan found sophomore wide receiver Eric Poindexter (Newport News, Va./Warwick/Monroe College) on a quick slant as the 5-foot-11 receiver laid out for the four-yard touchdown catch to tie the game.
 
Back-to-back false start penalties put the Pumas in a third-and-long position on their next possession and the defense forced a punt.
 
A 16-yard pass to Wood moved the Hawks into SJC territory, and then on 4th-and-4, Lonergan connected with Poindexter on the boundary for a 24-yard completion that set up the Hawks at the SJC 11-yard line. Harris was stuffed on 3rd-and-4 on that series, but reigning GLVC Special Teams Player of the Week Blake Allison (Decatur, Ill./St. Teresa) made a 22-yard field goal to give the Hawks a 10-7 lead with 2:29 to play.
 
After the Pumas picked up a first down, they threw three straight incompletions before a fake punt failed as punter Marcin Gawlak slipped on the muddy field. On the next play, Harris found a hole and made it a two-score game on a 20-yard touchdown run.
 
Saint Joseph's had two more possessions, but redshirt-sophomore cornerback Jasus Harkins (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon Township) and redshirt-freshman linebacker Nate Rueckemann (McHenry, Ill.) each intercepted passes to seal the win.
 
The Hawks had a 371-288 advantage in total offense and the defense held the Pumas to just 91 yards in the second half as they shut out the hosts over the final 58 minutes.
 
Lonergan managed the offense well, going 17-for-26 through the air for 257 yards and one touchdown. He did not throw an interception. Lonergan surpassed the 5,000-yard career passing mark in the game. He also punted three times for an average of 36 yards per punt.
 
Poindexter was his favorite target, catching a career-high nine passes for 114 yards and a touchdown. Wood caught three passes for 95 yards.
 
Harris picked up 88 yards on the ground to lead the rushing attack. He now has a touchdown in all but one game this season and now has 13 scores – two shy of Quincy's single-season record for rushing touchdowns.
 
Borlik finished 11-for-31 for 145 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions for the Pumas. Braxton Shelton rushed for 96 yards on 16 carries. He came into the game as the GLVC's leading rusher.
 
Rueckemann and Harkins led the Quincy defense with seven tackles apiece.
 
The Hawks will now travel to Liberty, Mo. next Saturday (Oct. 25) for a matchup against William Jewell, which is tied with Indianapolis atop the GLVC standings. The Cardinals (4-3, 4-0 GLVC) have won three straight games, all by one possession, including a 34-27 win at Missouri S&T on Saturday.
 
QU
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