ST. PAUL, Minn. – The University of Northwestern welcomed UMAC football leader, Martin Luther, to Reynolds Field for a Friday night conference match-up. The Eagles fell to the Knights (for the first time since 2009) in a 21-6 final.
Martin Luther put together a powerful first half, scoring three touchdowns and holding the Eagles scoreless by forcing two UNW turnovers.
Northwestern sparked a second half comeback late in the third quarter when
Taylor Lindahl (Watertown, S.D./Watertown) connected with
Gavin Welch (Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo) on a 70-yard touchdown pass to put the Eagles on the board. The PAT was no good to hold the Eagle deficit at 21-6. The reception marks the longest Lindahl to Welch pass this season, however, the two connected on a school record-setting 92-yard pass in 2017 against Eureka.
The Eagles forced back-to-back turnovers when
Dylan Kahlstorf (Spring Lake Park, Minn./Spring Lake Park) forced a Martin Luther fumble to recover possession early in the fourth quarter. In the next series,
Jadon Hatt (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North) intercepted a pass and returned it 14 yards (his fourth this season).
With the momentum on the Eagles side, they continued downfield aided by a 65-yard Lindahl to
Caleb Sieben (Anoka, Minn./Anoka) pass completion. On second and four at the MLC14, Lindahl's pass was intercepted in the end zone to put an abrupt end to Northwestern's fourth quarter comeback quest.
Gavin Welch (Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo) scored the lone touchdown for Northwestern and hauled in three receptions that covered a team-high 88 yards.
Caleb Sieben (Anoka, Minn./Anoka) had three catches for 68 yards.
Nate VanBeusekom (Arden Hills, Minn./Mounds View) led the running efforts, picking up 21 yards on 10 attempts.
Taylor Lindahl (Watertown, S.D./Watertown) completed 14 of 33 attempts for 224 yards passing.
On the defensive end, four Eagles tallied double-digit tackles.
Marcus Scarbrough (Pine City, Minn./Pine City) led the way with 13 tackles (including a tackle for loss).
George Obitz (Florence, Ariz./Florence) tacked on 12 tackles and
Ben Maki (Elk River, Minn./Spectrum) and
Chase Marlenee (Northfield, Minn./Northfield) each added 10.
Northwestern will enter its bye week before returning to play on Saturday, Nov. 3 when they travel to Fulton, Mo. Kickoff is slated for 12 p.m. noon. Follow the Eagles online this year at
www.unweagles.com