ADRIAN, Mich. -- The No. 21 Siena Heights football team cruised to a 42-0 shutout win over Taylor (Ind.) on homecoming. Gabe Callery (Traverse City, Mich.) broke the school record for longest fumble recovery return with his 71-yard game-winning touchdown in the first quarter to help lead a dominant Saints defense in the win.
THE BASICS
Final Score: Siena Heights 42, Taylor (Ind.) 0
Location: Adrian, Michigan (O'Laughlin Stadium)
Records: Siena Heights (5-1, 1-1 MASFA), Taylor (2-3, 0-2 MSFA)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Callery got the Saints going with a 71-yard fumble returned for a touchdown that broke the school record and put the Saints 7-0 with 8:28 remaining in the first quarter.
Ethan LoPresto capped an 11-play, 87-yard drive with a three-yard run to extend the lead to 14-0 with just over eight minutes remaining in the first half. Jerrold King (Eastpointe, Mich.) scored the first of two receiving touchdowns with 58 ticks left in the first half when he hauled in a 9-yard touchdown pass from Tyler Knecht (King Mills, Ohio) to give SHU the 21-0 lead at the half.
Jared Jordan (Grosse Point Woods, Mich.) joined in on the scoring in the third quarter with a one-yard TD run that finished a nine-play, 79-yard drive with 6:11 to go in the third stanza. King caught a 27-yard pass from Knecht in the back of the endzone with 14:42 remaining in the game to put things at 35-0, Saints. LoPresto tallied his second touchdown, a one-yard run, to finish the scoring on the day with just north of 11 minutes left in the game.
TOP SAINTS
Offense
• Knecht was 11-13 for 159 yards and two touchdowns through the air.
• Kaleb Jefferson (Bluffton, Ohio) was the leading rusher for the Saints with 125 yards on 17 carries.
• LoPresto totaled 50 yards rushing on 10 carries and two touchdowns.
• Justin Carrabino (Monroe, Mich.) led the Siena Heights receivers with four catches for 40 yards.
Defense
• Kole Murlin (Celina, Ohio) was all over the field for Siena as he led the defense with 15 tackles. He also recorded a half-sack, 2.5 tackles for loss, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.
• Nick Stalworth (Clarkston, Mich.) finished with eight tackles, .5 for loss.
• Callery added three tackles and .5 tackle for loss to his record-breaking performance.
Special Teams
• Anthony Secchi (Sterling Heights, Mich.) was a perfect 6-6 in extra-point attempts.
• Caleb Meister (Toledo, Ohio) punted four times for 171 yards. He pinned Taylor behind its own 20-yard line once.
THE OPPOSITION
Offense
• Zac Saltzgaber was 12-21 for 108 yards through the air.
• Tav Middlebrook was the leading rusher with 48 yards on nine carries.
• Preston Scott finished with 35 receiving yards on two catches.
Defense
• Jackson Bronkema led the Trojans with nine tackles.
• Mark Baker finished with seven tackles.
• De'Ariss Ho had five tackles, one half for loss.
• Jordan Jackson totaled five tackles in the losing effort.
Special Teams
• Mark Stroh punted six times for 203 yards. He pinned the Saints inside their own 20-yard line twice.
UP NEXT
Siena Heights hits the road next week for a game against Lawrence Tech at 12:00 p.m., EST.
