Arlington Heights, Ill. – For the third consecutive season and the sixth time in the last seven seasons, No. 13 ranked Saint Xavier University football (7-3, 5-0 MSFA Midwest) won the Mid-States Football Association (MSFA) Midwest League Championship after they defeated Roosevelt University (Ill.) 35-14 Saturday afternoon at Morris Field in Arlington Heights, Ill. Saint Xavier has now won 10 MSFA Midwest League Titles and 13 MSFA Championships overall after winning the MSFA Mideast League in 2009, 2010 & 2012. The win gives SXU an automatic berth into the NAIA Football Championship Series (FCS) Playoffs, the 16
th appearance in program history, and they will find out Sunday afternoon whether they earned one of the 12 First Round byes or if they will be in position to host next Saturday.
- Senior quarterback Stuart Ross (Springfield, Ill./Springfield Southeast) threw for 288 yards on 24-for-36 passing along with three touchdown passes.
- Redshirt junior running back Jessi Plunkett (Evergreen Park, lll./Brother Rice) had a team-high 55 yards rushing in 15 attempts and a touchdown.
- Graduate student wide receiver Justin Pringle (Romeoville, Ill./Plainfield East) caught 10 passes for 120 yards, his third straight game with 100 or more receiving yards, and he had one carry for a touchdown.
- Senior wide receiver Kyle Quinn (Tinley Park, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) had four receptions for 82 yards and a score.
- Senior wide receiver Brant Hixson (Machesney Park, Ill./Harlem) hauled in four passes for 27 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
- Sophomore linebacker Terry Elias Jr. (Monee, Ill./Crete-Monee) posted a team-leading six tackles (three solos).
- Senior defensive back Ron Carroll (University Park, Ill./Crete-Monee) tallied four tackles (two solos) with an interception. He now has 14 interceptions in his career, one shy of tying the team record.
- Senior linebacker Finn Brandon (Dixon, Ill./Dixon) also made four stops (three solos) along with a forced fumble and an interception.
- The Lakers struck first, scoring on a 75-yard touchdown pass on one play on their second possession of the contest at the 6:14 mark of the first quarter.
- The Cougars tied the game with 9:07 to go in the second period, using an 11-play, 70-yard drive that was set up by a fumble recovery. SXU capped the drive with a 32-yard touchdown pass from Ross to Quinn.
- Roosevelt responded with a quick score, going 56 yards on just three plays, when they had a 49-yard catch and run to regain the lead, 14-7, with 7:16 left in the half.
- The Saint Xavier defense forced a fumble two possessions later and the offense cashed in, marching 47 yards on eight plays that resulted in a nine-yard touchdown reception by Hixson.
- Midway through the third quarter Pringle took a handoff and scored from a yard out to put the Cougars ahead for good at the 7:28 mark.
- Ross and Hixson connected for their second touchdown of the afternoon on another nine-yard pass to start the fourth period. The drive went 79 yards on eight plays that chewed up 4:20 off the clock.
- Plunkett helped SXU pull away when he scored from four yards out with 8:00 left in regulation.
- Saint Xavier held RU scoreless in the second half thanks in part to a blocked punt by sophomore defensive lineman Justin Yeazell (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) that set up the final scoring drive. Brandon intercepted a pass deep in Cougar territory at the 12-yard line on the next Laker drive and Carroll came away with an interception on RU's next possession at the SXU 34-yard line to help salt the game away.
No. 13 Saint Xavier (7-3/5-0 MSFA Midwest) awaits its NAIA FCS Playoff seeding that will be announced by the national office on Sunday, November 12.
