By Don Owen
NKyTribune reporter
In the unpredictable world of college football, there’s no such thing as a breather on the schedule. Ask the folks at Virginia Tech about the supposed cupcake game last week against previously winless Old Dominion, which shocked the 13th-ranked Hokies with a 49-35 upset.
That’s just another reason for Thomas More to be wary of this week’s road trip to Canton, New York, where the Saints will meet St. Lawrence at 1 p.m. Saturday. Thomas More (3-1) enters that contest with a three-game winning streak, the latest triumph a 38-35 road triumph at Huntingdon (Ala.).
St. Lawrence, meanwhile, is 1-3 and is coming off a 34-26 loss at Morrisville (N.Y.) on Friday night. Also nicknamed the Saints, St. Lawrence has been outscored 115-84 in its four games this season. Included in the losses is a 65-12 setback against Brockport (N.Y.), which was ranked No. 4 nationally in the NCAA Division III poll at that time.
Thomas More has rallied to win the past two weeks with fourth-quarter heroics. In the latest comeback victory, the Saints trailed 35-31 with 2:43 remaining in Saturday’s game at Huntingdon. Thomas More drove 79 yards and scored the go-ahead touchdown with 50 seconds left on the clock when quarterback Justin Post scrambled for a 10-yard touchdown.
Hjavier Pitts paced the Thomas More ground attack with 176 yards, while Luke Zajac rushed for 108 yards. Darrell Crenshaw had two receptions for 42 yards, including a crucial 24-yard catch during the winning drive.
Pitts leads Thomas More with 560 yards rushing and five touchdowns. He is averaging 6.8 yards per carry and was named to the D3football Team of the Week on Tuesday for his performance against Huntingdon. Zajac has rushed for 347 yards and two touchdowns.
As a team, Thomas More averages 253.5 yards per game on the ground. The Saints average 448.5 yards of total offense and 32 points per game.
St. Lawrence is led by quarterback Tyler Grochot, who has thrown for 1,055 yards and nine touchdowns. Grochot was 22-of-43 passing for 299 yards with three touchdowns against Morrisville, but he was injured (helmet-to-helmet hit) late in the game. Aaron Ruthman took over for Grochot at quarterback and was 6-of-13 passing for 72 yards.
St. Lawrence has gained only 364 yards on the ground this season and allowed the opposition to rush for 892 yards.
TMC VOLLEYBALL JUMPS INTO TOP 10: The Thomas More volleyball team jumped to No. 10 in the latest NCAA Division III poll on Tuesday. The Saints (13-1) attained their highest national ranking since 1996.
Thomas More was also ranked in the top 10 in 1992, ’93 and ’95. The Saints were ranked as high as No. 4 in the nation in 1993.
Emily Mohs recorded a career-high 29 kills and hit .491 on Saturday as Thomas More pulled out a five-set victory at Transylvania. The Saints won by scores of 19-25, 25-23, 25-20, 16-25, 15-8 in a match that was played in Lexington.
Thomas More hit .348 in the fifth set to clinch the victory. Madison Krumpelman added 11 kills and 10 digs for the Saints, while Jenna Fessler collected 44 assists and 11 digs.
Thomas More travels to Illinois this weekend to play in the Millikin Tournament. The Saints meet Buena Vista at 5 p.m. Friday. Thomas More closes out the two-day event Saturday with matches against host Millikin and Hope (Mich.), and the Saints return home to play Cincinnati Christian at 7 p.m. on Oct. 2.
NCAA DIVISION III TOP 10 (AVCA poll)
1. Calvin (Mich.) – 12-0
2. Colorado College – 15-0
3. Wittenberg – 10-1
4. Johnson & Wales (R.I.) – 15-1
5. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps – 11-2
6. Juniata – 8-3
7. Emory – 8-3
8. Washington-St. Louis – 9-3
9. Pacific Lutheran 11-1
10. Thomas More – 13-1