MOUNT VERNON, Iowa – Grinnell College's football team put on its best offensive performance of the season and hung close with Cornell College for some time before falling 41-20 Saturday afternoon.
The Pioneers piled up 382 yards that included a banner day by
Carson Dunn '18, who scored a career-high three touchdowns. He rushed for 167 yards and also had a career-best 88 receiving yards.
Defensively, the nation's top tackler
Ryan Slager '19 tallied 14 tackles and is now just four shy of becoming Grinnell's all-time leader. He has 429 stops with a season-plus to go, behind only Lee Kraemer's total of 433 established from 1988-1991.
Tony Bergida '18 threw for 199 yards, completing 19-of-38 aerials.
Max Hill '20 had seven receptions for 62 yards and
David Taylor '20 made three catches for 18 yards.
Defensively, Slager also had a fumble recovery, forced fumble and interception.
Rick Johnson '20 added eight tackles and
Reed Winter '21,
Ben Lim '19 and
Brad Knowlton '20 tallied five each. Knowlton had a fumble recovery.
Cornell grabbed a 6-0 lead before Grinnell went to work, with Slager taking a Cornell fumble and returning it 32 yards to the Rams' 1-yard line. Dunn rushed for the TD from there and
Anaan Ramay '20 kicked the point after to put Grinnell up 7-6 with 6:22 left in the first period.
Cornell added a score before the end of the period, but Grinnell countered in the second frame with a nine-play, 87-yard drive. Dunn had a 52 yard-rush on the drive and finished it off with a 9-yard TD scamper. The extra point was blocked, making it a 13-all tie with 8:34 left until halftime.
The score remained tied at halftime before the Rams scored twice in the third frame for a 27-13 lead.
Grinnell closed out its scoring in the fourth quarter after Slager forced a fumble and Knowlton recovered at the Rams' 24-yard line. On the next play, Bergida found Dunn with a 24-yard scoring strike. The extra point by Ramay was good, making it 27-20 with 8:50 to play.
However, the Rams scored on their next two drives to seal the win and improve to 2-3 in the Midwest Conference South Division and 4-5 overall. Grinnell fell to 0-5 in the South and 1-8 overall.
The Pioneers close out their campaign next Saturday with a home contest against Beloit College. The Senior Day event kicks off at Rosenbloom Field at noon.
