MARION, Ind. -- A 17-point second half by No. 7 Indiana Wesleyan (7-1, 4-1) proved to be the difference in the Siena Heights Saints (4-4, 3-2) 27-10 loss on the road Saturday.
Kaleb Jefferson was the offensive leader for the Saints, with 81 yards rushing on eight carries for an average of 10.1 yards per rush. Jefferson was also the leading receiver with seven catches for 53 yards. Jared Jordan scored the only touchdown for Siena with five carries for 28 yards. Kole Murlin had 13 stops on the defensive side of the ball and one tackle for loss in the losing effort.
Siena Heights got the scoring started with a 35-yard field goal with 4:59 left in the first quarter. The kick capped a nine-play, 50-yard drive, and the Saints were on top 3-0. However, the Wildcats would knot things up with a field goal from 26-yards out in the second quarter after their nine-play drive.
Brayden Smith gave IWU its first lead of the game with an eight-yard touchdown catch from Xander Stokes with 4:52 left in the first half. Jefferson had rushes of 14 and 34 yards to move the Saints into the red zone before Jordan capped things off with back-to-back runs to get into the endzone and tie things up at 10 with just under three minutes remaining in the first half.
The Wildcats recaptured the lead after a scoreless third quarter with a four-yard pass from Stokes to Smith in the opening 20 seconds of the final quarter. The lead was extended on a 26-yard field goal with 10:05 left on the clock. However, a strip-sack on third down ended the Saints' next drive as Indiana Wesleyan recovered inside the SHU five-yard line and scored on the next play for the game's final score.
Up Next
Next week, the Saints have another contest against a top-10 opponent when No. 9 Marian comes to Adrian for a noon kick-off inside O'Laughlin Stadium.
