Game:            NAIA #3 Saint Xavier (IL) University              7-0 (4-0 MSFA Mideast)
                        at Malone University                                        1-4 (0-2 MSFA Mideast)
Date:               Saturday, October 16, 2010
Kickoff:            3:00 p.m. EDT at Fawcett Stadium
Broadcasts:   WNPQ 95.9 FM, www.thelight959.com
                         2:45 p.m. EDT pre-game (Clint Scroggs – play-by-play)
Live Video:     www.malonepioneers.com/streaming
Live Stats:      www.sidearmstats.com/malone/football
Tickets:           $5.00 adults; $2.00 students/senior citizens; children 12 and under are free

Series:
The Cougars hold a 5-4 advantage in the all-time series between the two teams. The squads have split the last four match-ups as SXU won the most recent meeting 66-31 in Chicago last season.

Coaches:
Malone – Eric Hehman is in his first season as the Pioneers' head coach after spending the last five years as the head coach at NCAA Division III Greenville (IL) College. Overall, Hehman tallied a 28-22 record at Greenville, leading the Panthers to a 7-3 record in 2009 and a berth in the NCCAA Victory Bowl.

St. Xavier – Mike Feminis is in his 12th season as the head coach at St. Xavier and has guided the Cougars to 96-39 mark, including a 7-0 record this fall. Last year under Feminis, the Cougars put together a perfect 11-0 regular season, advancing to the NAIA National Semifinals before falling to the eventual national champs, the University of Sioux Falls (SD).

Last Season's Records: Malone 3-6 (2-5 MSFA Mideast), St. Xavier 13-1 (7-0 MSFA Mideast)

Malone Notes:
The Pioneers fell 12-7 on the road to Taylor (IN) University this past Saturday…Malone grabbed a 7-0 lead in the contest after scoring on its opening drive of the game…However, this early TD would turn out to be the Pioneers' only points of the day as the Trojans shutout the Pioneers the rest of the way en route to the narrow win…Malone currently ranks third in the 16-team MSFA (seventh overall in the NAIA) in rushing offense with an average of 250.8 yards per game…The Pioneers also rank fifth in the conference (21st in the NAIA) in scoring defense, giving up an average of 18.8 points through their first five games.

Malone players to watch:
RB Markus McFolling has piled up 475 rushing yards on just 79 attempts (6.0 average) with three touchdowns…McFolling's average of 95.0 yards per game ranks third in the MSFA and 17th overall in the NAIA… QB Mike Karls has completed 15 of 34 pass attempts on the year for 274 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions…Karls is also the second-leading rusher on the team with 231 yards on 51 attempts (4.5 average), including a long run of 45 yards and one rushing TD…WR Matt Kiel has pulled in nine catches for 185 yards and two scores through the Pioneers' first five contests…TE Tom Ferron has also contributed to the passing game with six catches for 82 yards and one score…On the defensive side of the ball, LB Antonio Scassa leads the squad with 37 total tackles, including 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack…Scassa has also forced a fumble and intercepted a pass…DB Isaiah Wyatt follows with 34 tackles while LB Matt Vick has made 29 total stops with one interception…DB Willie Pearson has made 26 total tackles with two interceptions and six pass break-ups…DL Cody Carroll's 4.5 total sacks rank as the tenth highest total in the NAIA.

St. Xavier Notes:
The Cougars used 21 fourth-quarter points to pull away for a 56-25 victory at home over NAIA No. 14 Marian (IN) University this past Saturday …The high-powered Cougar offense has put up some staggering numbers so far this season as SXU has outscored its opponents by an average of 32.9 points per game and tallied at least 45 points in its first seven contests…The Cougars currently rank first in the NAIA in scoring (52.3 points per game) and second in passing offense (342.4 yards per outing)….In addition, they also pace the MSFA in kickoff returns (30.3 yards per attempt), punt returns (15.4 yards per attempt), pass efficiency (167.1 rating), and first downs (156).

St. Xavier players to watch:
QB Anthony Kropp has completed 155 of 241 pass attempts (64.3%) for 2117 yards with 32 touchdowns and eight interceptions…Kropp leads the MSFA in numerous statistical categories including passing average (302.4 yards per game), total offense (306.6 yards per game), and pass efficiency (175.3 rating)…He also ranks in the top five in the NAIA in each of these categories (fourth in passing average, third in total offense and fifth in pass efficiency)…WR Mike Maher has caught 61 passes for 810 yards and 13 touchdowns…Maher has also made a huge impact on special teams as he has averaged 35.6 yards on 11 kickoff returns, running back one punt and two kickoffs for touchdowns…Maher currently leads the NAIA in all-purpose yards (1243), kickoff return average, total receptions, total receiving yards, and scoring (96 points)…WR's Shane Zackery and Xavier Torres have also made substantial contributions as Zackery has tallied 24 catches for 294 yards and five TD's while Torres has pulled in 20 pass receptions for 321 yards and five scores… RB Donnie Selby has tallied 319 rushing yards on 53 attempts (6.0 average per carry) with three rushing touchdowns…LB Mike Bushnell has registered a team-high 58 total tackles, including 6.0 tackles for loss with 2.5 sacks and one forced fumble …DL Mike Prosser has made 33 stops on the year with 8.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, one interception and one forced fumble…Prosser's five total sacks rank sixth in the NAIA…K Tom Lynch, last week's MSFA Mideast Special Teams Player of the Week, is a perfect 48-for-48 on extra point attempts and 6-for-6 on field goal tries this season.

2010 Rosters: Malone  |  Saint Xavier
2010 Stats: Malone  |  Saint Xavier