WAUKESHA, Wis. -- The Augustana Vikings football team was defeated on the road on Saturday, falling to the Carroll Pioneers by a score of 30-20.
After nearly a scoreless opening quarter, each team got on the board with a touchdown on their last possession of the frame, beginning with a 36-yard touchdown pass from
Liam Crawley to
Breyden Smith to put the Vikings up 7-0 around the two-minute mark. The drive lasted nearly five minutes and went 92 yards. Less than two minutes later, Carroll answered with a 70-yard connection to even the game at 7-7 entering the second.Â
The Pioneers grabbed their first lead of the contest halfway through the second on a field goal, but the Vikings countered with a touchdown on the ensuing possession. This time, the team ate five minutes off the clock exactly and capped off a 75-yard march down the field with a 7-yard completion to
Ben Ludlum. Two minutes later, Carroll quickly went back out in front with just 34 seconds on the clock, but a 45-yard kickoff return from Smith and two 10-plus yard plays set up a 45-yard field goal from
Joren Clem to make it a 17-16 lead for the Vikings at half.
Another long return from Smith on the opening kickoff of the second half helped set up another made field goal from Clem to extend the Augie advantage to four at 20-16. A 38-yard run from the Pioneers proved to be the lone touchdown of the third and gave the home team a 23-20 advantage heading into the final 15 minutes of play. Just five seconds into the quarter, the Pioneers wrapped up a scoring drive with another touchdown to bring the score to 30-20. Augie saw just one drive enter Carroll territory the rest of the way as the Pioneers held on for the 10-point win.
Crawley finished his first start of the season with 240 yards and two touchdowns through the air, while
Mike DiGioia hit the century mark again with 110 yards running the ball. Smith led all receivers with a game-high nine catches and 106 yards. Defensively,
Luke Willis led the way with eight tackles.
With the loss, Augie drops to 3-3 overall and 2-3 in the CCIW. The team will be back home next Saturday vs. No. 1 North Central.
