RIPON, Wis. - Playing in their only home game of the abbreviated 2021 Spring schedule, the Ripon football team lost to Martin Luther College Saturday, 34-16.. Neither team went to the air much, combining for just 90 yards on eight completions.
After the first three possessions of the game were uneventful, Ripon took early control of the game when quarterback
Cormac Madigan scored on a nine-yard touchdown run with five and a half minutes remaining in the opening quarter. The Red Hawks added to that lead on their following possession, which resulted in a 28-yard field goal by
Erik Flores.
From there, it was all Martin Luther, as they scored 34 consecutive points. The Knights scored their first points with 10 and a half minutes left in the second period when Austin DeNoyer scored from two yards out. MLC took their first lead of the contest in the final minutes of the half when DeNoyer scored another TD after a Ripon fumble set the Knights up on the one-yard line.
After taking a 14-10 lead into halftime, MLC added to their lead on their first play of the half as Joshua Kren rumbled 70 yards for the score. They would score yet again in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter on a six-yard run by Elliot Butler. The Knights' would make one more house call in the game when DeNoyer found Mike Radue for a four-yard score to take a 34-10 lead with three and a half minutes to play. Ripon capped the scoring with a one-yard score by Madigan.
Madigan led the Red Hawks with 82 yards on 18 carries (4.6 ypc).
Kevin Thao also made some splash plays, rushing for 69 yards on 12 carries (5.8 ypc), including a long of 37. Playing in a new spread formation, the former option team was led by
Parker Campana and
Masyn Ulrich, who each caught two passes for 54 and 16 yards, respectively. Ripon's defense was led by
Brad Guell's 10 tackles (1.5 for a loss), including 0.5 sacks. The Red Hawks forced four fumbles, but recovered only one.
Martin Luther rushed for 345 yards on 68 carries, led by Kren's 210 yards on 23 totes. Defensively, Brice Guse and Adam Arrowsmith each recorded 1.5 sacks. The Knights nearly doubled Ripon's time of possession, with 39:58 TOP in the contest.
Ripon will close out their shortened 2021 Spring season on April 24 at Lake Forest College. That game can be seen live at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/ripon/.
