Alfred State (0-8) at Maranatha Baptist (3-5)  

Saturday, November 5, 2016 * Noon CST (1 p.m. EST)

Watertown, WI

2nd meeting - Alfred State defeated Maranatha Baptist 34-18

2016 Averages:         

ASC Offense: 9.2 points per game, 215.6 ypg (79.8 rushing & 135.9 passing)

ASC Defense: 41.5 points per game, 455.8 ypg (257.5 rushing & 198.2 passing)

MB Offense: 16.6 points per game, 223.6 ypg (90.1 rushing & 133.4 passing)

MB Defense: 29 points per game, 370.1 ypg (207.3 rushing & 162.9 passing)

Players to watch:

Last Time Out: 

• The Pioneers struggled with the trio of Mike McGee, Josiah Israel, and Keelan Cole led in a 52-7 loss to Kentucky Weslyan. McGee passed for 277 yards and five scores, Israel rushed for 237 yards on 21 carries and twoscores, and Cole caught five passes for 141 yards and two scores. Khris Greggs caught a 19-yard touchdown pass from Eli Frantz to account for the Pioneers points. Dashown Wilson led Alfred State with 53 yards rushing on 11 carries while Frantz rushed for 42 yards and Hezekiah Williamson had 40 yards. Josh Ashley  caught three passes for 60 yards. John Lauretti led the Pioneer defense with nine tackles while Brandon Davis had eight. Michael Zimmerman and Steven Hubick each chipped in seven tackles.
• The Sabercats defeated Trinity Bible (ND) 34-18 last weekend. MB scored the first 31 points in the game, including three touchdowns in the 2nd quarter. Joshua Hill was threw for two scores and rushed for another. Frankie Martinez rushed for 66 yards on 15 carries and Jonah Bueltel rushed for 53 yards and a score. Clayton Morrison led the defense with eight tackles while Clint Saxon had seven. The Sabercats forced four turnovers on the day (two interceptions and two fumble recoveries.

History between Teams:

• The Pioneers and Sabercats are both independent members of Division III of the NCAA and will battle for the second straight season. Last season, the Pioneers used a 18-point 2nd quarter to gain the momentum en route to a 34-18 victory at Pioneer Stadium. Ben Wilkerson, current QB coach, had a big day passing for 329 yards and three scores and rushing for 47 yards and a score (Josh Ashley caught four passes for 105 yards while Khris Greggs had eight catches for 83 yards). The Pioneers had their biggest offensive output of the season with 567 yards (Joshua Hinds rushed for 122 yards on the day as well). Maranatha passed for 354 yards and had two receivers over the 100-yard mark (205 for Jowan Williams & 107 for Clayton Morrison). The Pioneers picked off three passes last year with Chris Monteiro picking off a pair. Ben Schulz led the visitors with 14 tackles while Joshua Hill addded 13.

Common Opponents:

• The Pioneers and Sabercats have no common opponents. Both teams are NCAA DIII Independents.

Scouting the Pioneers:

• The Pioneers need to bounce back from a very physcial game last week. Three different quarterbacks took snaps with Eli Frantz making his collegiate debut and passing for his first collegiate touchdown. 
• Last season vs. Maranatha, the Pioneers had their best offensive game of the year. In the game the team rushed for 238 yards. Look for the blue & gold to try to get Hezekiah Williamson going and for the quarterbacks to look for some running space.
• The defense completely slowed down the Sabercat rushing attack last year (-7 yards). The defense also made big plays to stop drives. The Pioneers only have three interceptions on the season and five fumble recoveries and will look to add to that number.
• Steven Hubick is just eight tackles away from becoming the first NCAA DIII era to reach the 100-tackle plateau. Hubick has 21 more solo tackles than any of his teammates.
• Struggles continue on 3rd Down - the Pioneers were 1 of 16 last week and have converted just 22% of their attempts on the year. 
• This is the longest road trip of the season for the Pioneers. The two campuses are 719 miles apart!

Scouting the Sabercats:

• Maranatha has the smallest roster of any team that the Pioneers have played this season. The roster features 37 players with numerous listed on the two-deep on both sides of the ball.
• The Sabercats played both quarterbacks last week, Jonah Bueltel and Joshua Hill. Both have similar results with Hill holding a slight advantage with 439 passing yards and five TD's. Clayton Morrison is the favorite target leading the team with 25 catches for 223 yards. He ha caught five of the team's eight touchdowns.
• Ben Schulz is far and away the top statistical player on the defense. He has recorded 80 tackles (43 solo) on the year. He has 25 more than Trevor Schmidt. The defense has forced 19 turnover and the team has a +!0 turnover ratio.

Game Day Information:

• Live Video: http://mbusabercats.com/live/

Up Next:

• Alfred State wraps up the season at Morrisville next weekend.
• Maranatha Baptist hosts Minnesota Morris next Saturday to close out the season.