LIVONIA, Mich. - The Madonna University Crusaders returned to Michigan this week for Senior Day and their final home game of the season to take on the Concordia University Ann Arbor Cardinals. The Crusaders fought hard and gave it their all, but ultimately fell short in the end. The final score: 58-13 Cardinals in the MSFA Mideast League showdown at Churchill High School.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Crusader Nation gathered at Churchill High School before the game this Saturday to honor the eight seniors in Madonna Football's first ever senior class: D'Vonta Garrett, Luke Pfromm, Assane Ka, Dy'Shone Hayes, Jakel Davis, Zack Bluemer, Darnell Ishman, and Will Sollie.

After receiving the opening kickoff, senior quarterback Assane Ka led the Crusader offense on the game's opening drive. Despite a few hard runs, Madonna's offense couldn't move the chains and was forced to punt it away. After receiving the punt, it only took the Cardinals two plays to strike first with an 11-yard rushing touchdown by Brandon Stewart. Following the extra point kick by Casey Rauch, Concordia went up 7-0.

Ka found his stride after the Crusaders got the ball back and marched the offense down the field. Madonna chipped away at the Cardinals' defense with a 75-yard 15-play drive that was capped off with a 2-yard rushing touchdown by Nik Allgood. After the PAT kick by William Stoyanovich, Madonna tied the game 7-7.

Concordia's offense quickly fired back with two explosive plays, including a 23-yard touchdown pass by Jalen Smith to Seeger DeGayner. The Cardinals took back the lead, making it a 14-7 ball game.

On their next drive, the Crusader offense couldn't recapture the momentum from their last scoring drive, and was forced to punt after a three-and-out. The Madonna defense stepped up though. On the second play of Concordia's next drive, Carl Ware stripped the ball from Smith for a fumble and gave the Crusader offense the ball back in great field position to end the first quarter.

Despite the big defensive stop by the Crusaders, their offense was unable to build off of the momentum, and ended up having to punt on their next drive.

Following the punt, Concordia's offense ground away at the Crusader defense with a grueling 11-play 87-yard drive. Madonna's defense held strong against Concordia's tough offensive line but ultimately broke, giving up a 2-yard touchdown to Stewart. The Cardinals extended their lead to 21-7.

Josh DePaulis took over at quarterback for the Crusaders on their next drive, but was unable to get the offense going right away, and the Crusaders were forced to punt again.

The Crusader defense stepped up once again on the next drive. Will Fennema II caught Stewart behind the line of scrimmage for a loss and forced Concordia to punt the ball away.

After both teams traded punts, Madonna got the ball back one last time in the first half backed up near their own endzone. Unable to make something out of nothing, the Crusaders went into the half still down by 14.

Concordia came out firing in the second half. After receiving the second-half kickoff, they drove straight down the field for the score. This time it was Smith who found the endzone on a 7-yard rushing touchdown to make the score 28-7.

The Cardinals refused to give the Crusaders any breathing room, kicking and successfully recovering an onside kick immediately following their touchdown. After getting the onside back, Smith found Stewart for a 32-yard score. Concordia now led 35-7.

DePaulis was finally able to light a fire in the Crusader offense once they got the ball back. The Crusaders drove down the field with a long drive that included a 14-yard rush by DePaulis that kept the chains moving on fourth down. Allgood ended the drive by scoring his second rushing touchdown of the day for the Crusaders, this time from the 1 yard line. After the Cardinals blocked the extra point attempt, Madonna closed the gap to 35-13.

Just as Madonna had gotten their momentum back, the Cardinals returned the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown. A missed extra point by Rauch made the score 41-13.

Madonna wasn't ready to give up though. DePaulis came out firing with a 22-yard completion to D'Vonta Garrett. However, after being sacked twice, the Crusaders were forced to punt it away. The Cardinals took advantage and drove all the way down the field. This time it was Shondel Hardnett who found the endzone with a 27-yard rushing touchdown. The Cardinals extended their lead to 48-13.

Despite Madonna's best efforts, Concordia added a field goal and a touchdown in the fourth quarter to close out the game and earn the 58-13 victory. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

● Assane Ka completed 10-of-20 passes for 78 yards, and DePaulis completed 4-of-12 passes for 53 yards.
● Nik Allgood rushed the ball 14 times for a total of 33 yards and 2 rushing touchdowns.
● Will Fennema II led the Crusader defense in tackles with nine total tackles and one tackle-for-loss.
● Carl Ware was everywhere on defense for Madonna, recording four total tackles, one sack, one TFL, and one forced fumble.

UP NEXT:

The Madonna University football team hits the road for the final game of their season to take on the #5 Indiana Wesleyan University Wildcats on Saturday, November 12th at Wildcat Football Stadium in Marion, Indiana.

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