UPLAND, Ind. — Curtis Smith Jr. ran for two touchdowns as the Siena Heights football team dropped a 21-14 Mid-States Football Association Mideast League contest to Taylor (Ind.), on Saturday.
Smith ran 67 yards in six rushes for the Saints, including a 20-yard touchdown that started off the scoring in the first quarter as SHU took their lone lead of the night at 7-0. With 16 carries, Dont'e Fox totaled 65 yards for the Saints including his longest rush that was 19 yards.
SHU quarterback Lucas Barner Jr. went 14-for-32 in completions for a total of 153 yards. He ran for 26 of the Saints' total 139 rushing yards. Barner connected with Deontae Rush for 61 yards in three grabs while Austin Krider brought in five catches for 33 yards.
Taylor had an explosive second quarter, putting two touchdowns on the board. Tim Barrett managed a 46 yard run with 10:46 remaining in the second. With 4:42 on the clock, quarterback Everett Pollard sent a 22-yard pass to Grant Hohlbein who snagged it in the end zone, making it 14-7 heading into halftime.
At the 12:40 minute mark the Trojans recovered a SHU fumble, eventually scoring a touchdown when Pollard connected with Hans Ludberg in the end zone to make it 21-7 in Taylor's favor.
Nate Yeloushan made an interception on Taylor's 19-yard line to give the Saints possession with 7:13 remaining in the third quarter. Smith again responded for the Saints diving into the end zone to close the gap, 21-14.
Siena Heights (3-3, 2-3) managed to get in the red-zone with over five minutes remaining on the game clock, but were unable to convert on 4th-and-3 to keep possession. Defense held strong for both teams in the fourth quarter with neither team scoring any points.
Defensively, EJ Shaah and Yeloushan both made 10 tackles for the Saints. Yeloushan finished with five solo and five unassisted tackles along with an interception return for seven yards and a pass breakup. Shaah earned three solo and seven assisted tackles while making one tackle for a loss of a yard. Also making an interception for SHU was Allen Jefferson.
Leading the Trojans (3-5, 1-3) was quarterback Pollard, who threw for 75 yards and ran for 55 yards. Daniel Boy and Grant Hohlbein received for 26 and 25 yards, respectively. On the ground, Tim Barrett took 74 yards while Rich Giordani went 67 yards.
For the TU defense, Cameron Gray earned five solo tackles and four unassisted tackles while Ben Rupert totaled five tackles and a 13-yard sack against the Saints.
The Saints out-passed Taylor, 210-78, while the Trojans outran SHU, 234-139. Overall, Siena Heights totaled 349 yards in 69 plays as Taylor compiled 312 yards in 68 plays.
Siena Heights will be back in action when they host Olivet Nazarene on Saturday, Oct. 22, for a MSFA league crossover contest. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. at O'Laughlin Stadium.
