Box Score

The Malone University football team secured a thrilling 30-27 road victory over McKendree (IL) University on Saturday afternoon as senior kicker Nick Allison nailed a 35-yard field goal on the final play of the game. The clutch kick broke a 27-27 tie and gave the Pioneers' their first 2-0 start to a season since 2002.

The host Bearcats had trailed 27-17 with six and half minutes remaining in the fourth quarter but fought back to tie the game after putting together a pair of nine-play scoring drives, the first culminating with a 39-yard field goal by McKendree kicker Josh Pruitt and the second ending on a five yard touchdown pass from quarterback Austin Fisher to tight end Jacob Strausbaugh with just 44 seconds remaining.

Following a 26-yard kickoff return by slot back Justin McLean, the Pioneers began their final drive of the game on their own 43-yard line with 38 ticks showing on the clock. Quarterback Will Szpor quickly completed four straight passes (two to McLean, one to tight end Drew Bond and one to running back Malik Felton) to move Malone to McKendree's 38-yard line. Following an incompletion, the game then appeared to be headed for overtime when Szpor's next pass was intercepted at the Bearcats' 5-yard line by defensive back Michael Romshek.

However, McKendree was flagged on the play for a late hit on Szpor. The crucial 15-yard penalty gave the ball back to the Pioneers at the Bearcat 23-yard line. Allison then trotted out to try and win the game with a 40-yard field goal attempt. Once again, the contest seemed en route to overtime when Allison's first try sailed wide left. Yet once again, a penalty proved huge as a McKendree defender was flagged for roughing the kicker on the 40-yard miss. With no time left on the clock, Allison cashed in on his second chance, splitting the uprights from 35 yards out to seal the thrilling win and give Malone a victory on the final play of the game for the second straight week.

McKendree, which posted a 9-3 record in 2010 and advanced the quarterfinal round of the NAIA playoffs, saw its record slip to 0-1 on the season following Saturday's contest, its first game of the year. Malone, meanwhile, opened at 2-0 for just the fifth time in program history, having also started the 1995, 1996, 1999 and 2002 seasons with two victories.

The Pioneers held a lead for nearly the entire game on Saturday, pulling ahead 7-0 eight minutes into the first quarter when Szpor connected with McLean on a 54-yard TD pass. Malone's advantage then grew to 14-0 less than two minutes into the second frame as running back Emil Chambliss capped an 11-play, 98-yard Pioneer scoring drive with a 28-yard TD run.

McKendree cut the deficit in half just before intermission, pulling to within 14-7 on a 23-yard touchdown pass from Fisher to wide receiver Myron Hicks.

Malone answered back on its opening drive of the second half as it pushed its advantage to 21-7 on Chambliss' second rushing touchdown of the game, this time from 18 yards out.

The Bearcats then registered their first points of the second stanza with 2:53 remaining in the third quarter as Fisher found Strausbaugh with a 29-yard TD pass, trimming the Malone lead to 21-14. Pruitt inched McKendree closer midway through the fourth, connecting on a 35-yard field goal to make the score 21-17.

The momentum quickly swung back in Malone's favor seconds later, though. Much like last week, when he set a new Pioneer record with a 90-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Tiffin, McLean came through with another huge special teams play as the junior from Laurel Hill, North Carolina re-wrote the Malone record books once again by returning the ensuing McKendree kickoff 99 yards for a score.

However, thanks to a strong rush on the extra point try, Allison had to hook his PAT attempt off the mark, leaving the score at 27-17. The Bearcats then clawed all the way back to tie the game before Malone managed to seal the win with the late kick.

On the afternoon, Malone totaled 358 yards of offense with 129 yards coming on the ground and 229 through the air. McKendree countered with 459 total yards, 160 rushing and 299 passing. Both teams committed one turnover apiece and were each penalized a total of seven times.

Szpor completed 28 of 40 pass attempts for 229 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Chambliss picked up 74 rushing yards on 11 carries (6.7 average) with the two touchdown runs. Fellow running back Daryon Mosley added 49 rushing yards on nine carries.

In addition to breaking the Pioneer record for the longest kickoff return in Saturday's contest, McLean also established a new mark for the most kick return yardage in a game with 148 total yards on three kick returns. In all, McLean posted 217 all-purpose yards as he also tallied 69 receiving yards on four catches.

Felton grabbed a game-high eight catches for 47 yards while Bond hauled in six receptions for 38 yards.

For the second straight week, Malone's defense came up with timely stops when it needed them as the unit allowed McKendree to convert on just eight of its 20 third-downs while stopping three of four Bearcat fourth-down attempts.

Linebacker Brandon Commodore paced the unit with nine total tackles, including two tackles for loss. Fellow linebacker Antonio Scassa also recorded nine tackles while linebacker Matt Vick made eight stops. Defensive backs Demarco Donaldson and Logan Francis each made seven tackles apiece. Linebacker Joseph Gump made four stops, including one sack. Defensive back Glen Raphael added three tackles with two pass break-ups and one interception.

For McKendree, Fisher set new Bearcat single-game records for completions, attempts and passing yards, connecting on 27 of 49 throws for 299 yards. He threw a total of three touchdowns with one interception. Hicks pulled in five catches for 58 yards and one score while Strausbaugh snagged five catches for 57 yards, two of which went for TDs. Fullback Stephen Wallace totaled 59 rushing yards on seven attempts. Linebacker Brandon Nigro led the way for McKendree's defense with 15 total tackles, including three tackles for loss.

Malone will be back in action next Saturday at home as the squad looks to make it three wins in a row with a 2:00 p.m. contest against Saint Ambrose (IA) University (1-1 overall). All former Malone players are encouraged to attend as part of Football Alumni Day. Fans that cannot make it to Fawcett Stadium can catch all the action on the Malone Sports Network (on the radio at WNPQ 95.9 FM or on the internet at www.thelight959.com). Live streaming video and statistics will also be available. Click here to access the links for each.