Posted: Oct 04, 2018
ADRIAN, Mich. -- The Siena Heights football team comes off of the bye week to host Taylor (Ind.) in the 2018 Siena Heights University homecoming game on October 6. This contest is also a Mid-States Football Association (MSFA) Mideast League game.
The Saints come into the game with a 4-0 overall recorded and a 1-0 MSFA mark. Siena Heights began the 2018 campaign with back-to-back road contests for the first time in program history. This is also the first time that the Saints football team has started 4-0. Siena began the year with a 21-7 win at Missouri Baptist and a 16-7 win at Olivet Nazarene. The Saints then won their home opener 40-0 over Robert Morris (Ill.) before another road win (38-27) over Saint Francis (Ill.) on September 22.
The Trojans are 2-2 so far this season. Both of the team's wins have come on the road. They opened the year with a 43-31 win over Indiana Wesleyan. Butler University defeated Taylor 31-17 in week two. The Trojans then defeated Trinity International (50-13) to improve to 2-1. Last week, Taylor fell to (RV) Saint Xavier 49-36.
This will be the seventh match-up between Siena Heights and Taylor (Ind.) in football. The series is currently tied 3-3. The total point differential between these teams in the series is only a score with the Trojans edging the Saints 160-153.
This is the fourth time that these teams will meet in O'Laughlin Stadium. The last time these teams met in Adrian, Michigan, the Trojans rolled past the Saints for a 63-21 win. That was the largest point differential in the series.
Last season, the Saints upended Taylor by a score of 48-26. Siena finished that game with 391 yards of total offense (182 passing, 209 rushing). D'aries Davis scored three rushing touchdowns and ran for 191 yards in the win.
The Trojans are led by senior quarterback Everett Pollard. Pollard leads the team with 48-90 passing for 643 yards and five touchdowns while only throwing two interceptions so far this year. He also leads the team in rushing with 262 yards on the ground and four touchdowns. The leading receiver for Taylor is Grant Hohlbein who has hauled in 14 catches for 155 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, the Trojans are led by Jackso Bronkema with 29 tackles, 1.0 for loss, and one sack. He has also forced and recovered one fumble. Jordan Jackson and Jeff Kaczmarek each have 25 tackles on the year. Jackson has a one-half tackle for loss and Kaczmarek has one tackle for loss. The sack leaders for Taylor are Ra Murray and Tyler Hasbrook who have each recorded 1.5 sacks this year.
Austi Gunderson is 2-2 in field goals this year. He long is a 32-yard kick. Gunderson is also the team's punter and has 24 punts for 792 yards and a long of 51 yards. He has pinned seven of his punts inside the 20-yard line.
The Saints are led offensively by the running duo of fifth-year senior D'aires Davis and redshirt freshman Jared Jordan. Davis has accumulated 527 rushing yards so far this season. He is currently averaging 5.1 yards-per-carry and 131.8 yards a game. Jordan has 296 rushing yards and has scored six of Siena's nine rushing touchdowns. Together, these two backs have led the Saints to the second-best rushing offense in the league.
The defense is currently ranked first in scoring, second in total defense, fourth in rushing defense, and first in passing defense. The defensive unit is led by sophomore linebacker Nick Stalworth with 25 tackles including six solo and 1.5 tackles for loss. Junior linebackers Logan Smith and Griffen Sobol have totaled 22 tackles on the year. Sobol also has 1.5 sacks, three tackles for loss, and has hauled in an interception.
On special teams, SHU is led by senior kicker Brady Tanguay. Tanguay is 4/5 in field goals (80%) with a long of 43 yards. Punter Caleb Meister has 790 yards on 21 punts this year. he has pinned six of his kicks inside the 20-yard line and has a season-long of 51 yards.
The 2018 Siena Heights Homecoming Game is set for a 4:00 p.m., EDT, kickoff. The game will be broadcasted online and can be followed via live stats on shusaints.com by clicking here. Fans can also watch the video stream on the Siena Heights Sports Network here. Lastly, the game can be listened to by visiting WLEN.com and clicking the listen now link to find the live radio broadcast of the game or by tuning into 103.9 FMj on Saturday afternoon.
