SAINT LOUIS – Dayton answered a late San Diego comeback with a touchdown in the final minute, while Butler rallied from a halftime deficit at Drake. St. Thomas pulled away at Marist, Valparaiso defeated Presbyterian and Morehead State recovered from a halftime deficit to beat Stetson.
PFL Scoreboard: Week 8
Saturday, October 17
Dayton def. San Diego, 37-32
St. Thomas def. Marist, 35-13
Valparaiso def. Presbyterian, 24-7
Butler def. Drake, 33-21
Morehead State def. Stetson, 38-31
PFL Recaps: Saturday, Oct. 24
Dayton 37, San Diego 32
DAYTON, Ohio — Gavin Lochow caught a 14-yard touchdown pass from Bryce Schondelmyer with 57 seconds remaining as Dayton answered San Diego's late comeback to win 37-32 Saturday at Welcome Stadium.
San Diego opened with Emiliano Salazar's 29-yard field goal and Adam Criter's 5-yard touchdown run, but LeRoy Lewis IV returned the ensuing kickoff 97 yards for Dayton's first score. The Flyers took the lead on Mason Hackett's 4-yard run early in the second quarter and led 21-10 at halftime after Schondelmyer's 10-yard pass to Lochow.
Lochow raced 56 yards for a touchdown on Dayton's opening third-quarter possession; Dom Nankil responded with a 39-yard scoring pass to Elijah Taylor. Trailing 31-24 in the fourth, San Diego recovered a fumbled kickoff return at the Dayton 22, but Jalen Brooks blocked Salazar's 39-yard field-goal attempt. Criter later capped a 94-yard drive with a 7-yard touchdown and caught the two-point conversion to put the Toreros ahead 32-31 with 1:32 left. Dayton answered in three plays, with Lochow scoring the winner.
Nankil passed for 471 yards, and Taylor caught 15 passes for 204 yards. Criter scored three rushing touchdowns. Schondelmyer threw for 259 yards and two touchdowns, while Lochow had 83 receiving yards, two touchdown catches and a 56-yard scoring run.
St. Thomas 35, Marist 13
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. — Gabriel Abel rushed for 122 yards and two touchdowns as St. Thomas used a 21-point second quarter to defeat Marist 35-13 Saturday at Tenney Stadium.
Marist opened with Sonny Mannino's 22-yard touchdown pass to Jayden Taylor. Stefano Giovannelli tied the game on a 5-yard run early in the second quarter. After Marist lost a fumble at its 27, Abel's 10-yard touchdown run put St. Thomas ahead. Nick Peipert finished a 15-play, 80-yard possession with a 7-yard touchdown run four seconds before halftime to make it 21-10.
After a 24-yard Marist completion ended in a lost fumble in St. Thomas territory, Peipert connected with Quentin Cobb-Butler for a 38-yard touchdown early in the fourth. Luke Stenson's 45-yard field goal cut the deficit to 15 before Abel scored from 5 yards out to secure the win.
Peipert passed for 190 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 85 yards and a score. Cobb-Butler caught six passes for 88 yards. Mannino passed for 193 yards for Marist, and Taylor caught five passes for 91 yards.
Valparaiso 24, Presbyterian 7
VALPARAISO, Ind. — Valparaiso capitalized on special-teams plays and held Presbyterian scoreless after halftime in a 24-7 victory Saturday at Brown Field.
A blocked Presbyterian punt set up Cedric Benning III's 1-yard touchdown run on a short Beacons’ opening drive. Russell Tye added a 10-yard scoring run to make it 14-0 early in the second quarter. Presbyterian answered with a 14-play, 91-yard possession capped by Max Holtzclaw's 2-yard run, pulling within 14-7 before halftime.
Another blocked Presbyterian punt gave Valparaiso the ball at the Blue Hose 14, setting up Rowan Keefe's 1-yard touchdown run early in the fourth. Luke Scoma added a 48-yard field goal with 5:37 remaining. The Beacons also intercepted Holtzclaw in the second half to end a Presbyterian possession.
Keefe passed for 275 yards, including a 69-yard completion to Ashton Allen and a 59-yarder to Isaac Tran. Holtzclaw rushed for 102 yards and Presbyterian's lone touchdown, while Jackson Burleson added 56 rushing yards.
Butler 33, Drake 21
DES MOINES, Iowa — Butler scored 16 unanswered second-half points, including two fourth-quarter touchdowns in just over a minute, to rally past Drake 33-21 Saturday at Drake Stadium.
Drake struck first on Riley Warzynski's 32-yard touchdown pass to Lincoln DeLaere. Kavaughn Clark's 7-yard scoring run extended the lead to 14-3, but Gabe Passini found Luke Snyder for a 2-yard touchdown, and Michael Dellumo ran in from 2 yards to put Butler ahead. Warzynski's 11-yard touchdown pass to Lucci Fidone with seven seconds remaining restored Drake's 21-17 halftime lead.
Beck Janki's third-quarter field goal cut the deficit to one. Desmin Jackson scored on a 2-yard run to put Butler ahead 26-21 with 8:23 left. On Drake's next play, Kian Kelly intercepted Braylon Wilson and returned the ball 36 yards to the Drake 2. Passini scored two plays later to take a 33-21 lead.
Jackson rushed for 91 yards, Passini ran for 87, and Dellumo added 68. Warzynski passed for 200 yards and two touchdowns, while Willis Nofsinger caught three passes for 51 yards for Drake.
Morehead State 38, Stetson 31
MOREHEAD, Ky. — Blake Fisher scored three touchdowns as Morehead State rallied from a seven-point halftime deficit to defeat Stetson 38-31 Saturday at Phil Simms Stadium.
Bryce Patterson opened the scoring on an 11-yard pass to Cannon Dinger. Stetson answered with Thomas von Grote's 37-yard touchdown pass to Landon Farco before Fisher's 11-yard run put Morehead State back ahead. Von Grote found Farco again for a 43-yard touchdown, and Troy Flowers' 3-yard run gave Stetson a 21-14 halftime lead.
Jordan Price's 41-yard field goal and a 10-yard Patterson-to-Fisher touchdown pass tied it at 24 in the third quarter. Patterson found Fisher again from 11 yards out early in the fourth for the go-ahead score. Jackson Lanier's 5-yard touchdown run extended the lead to 38-24 with 1:41 remaining. Von Grote answered with a 2-yard scoring pass to Shawne Jones, but the Eagles held on.
Patterson threw for 234 yards and three touchdowns; Fisher rushed for 98 yards and caught five passes for 30 yards and two scores. Von Grote passed for 350 yards and three touchdowns, and Farco caught four passes for 102 yards.