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The Malone University football team will close out the 2016 season with a lenghty road trip to the University of West Alabama this Saturday, November 12th. Kickoff is set for 3:00 pm ET.

Media Information
Live Video: portal.stretchinternet.com/uwa/
Live Stats: sidearmstats.com/uwa/football
Live (Malone) Audio: ESPN 990 AM (Massillon) and online at:www.espn990.com/listen.php
Twitter: @Malone_Football , @maloneathletics

Gameday Storylines
Malone Closes Out the Season in Alabama
The Pioneers will make a trip into the central time zone for the second time in two weeks and the third time this season as they travel to Livingston, Alabama for their final game of the season. Not surprisingly, Malone has never traveled to Alabama in the history of the program. The Pioneers have still yet to win a road game this season and are winless in their last 16 tries dating back to 2013. Malone will also seek to win its first season-ending win since 2010.
 
Pioneers Lose in a Shootout
Malone is coming off of a disappointing 40-30 loss to Kentucky Wesleyan last Saturday and remains winless in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference. The Pioneers had a 10-7 lead midway through the second quarter, but All-American receiver Keelan Cole helped the Panthers go on a 33-6 run before holding on for the victory. On a positive note, the 30 points for Malone was the most points scored on the road since 2013.
 
Kicker Making History
In the loss to Kentucky Wesleyan, Malone kicker Marcus Moeller was a perfect three-for-three in field goal tries from 42, 22, and 44 yards out. The three makes not only tied a single-game record, but it also upped his season total to 13. The 13 field goals is the highest single-season total in Malone history, passing the previous mark of 11 by Jeremy Rininger in 2003. Moeller is 13-of-15 in field goals this season and his 86.7% success rate ranks 5th in all of NCAA DII. In addition to his success in the kicking game, Marcus has served well in the punting game, averaging 39.5 yards per punt in 53 punts this season. The 39.5 yard average would be the third-highest in a Malone single season and his 39.0 career average would rank 1st all-time.
 
Pioneers Threaten Even More Records
While Moeller made his mark on the Malone kicking record book, wide receiver Ashton Dulin threatened a record of his own. The sure-handed sophomore caught 12 passes last week, one shy of the single-game record of 13 receptions achieved three times previously. Dulin totaled 168 yards receiving and now has 817 on the season. With a solid game on Saturday, Dulin has a chance to make his way into the single-season top-5. Matt Blasiole, who already had the 4th-highest single-season rushing average last season, is threatening to take over the 5th spot as well. On the season, Blasiole is averaging 103.6 yards per contest. Both Dulin and Blasiole have gone over 1,000 all-purpose yards this season, registering 1,203 and 1,046 yards respectively.
 
Big Plays Continue to Haunt Malone on Defense
While Dulin and Blasiole rack up the big plays on offense, the Malone defense has struggled with the big plays on their side of the ball. In the loss to Kentucky Wesleyan, Malone surrendered seven plays of 20 or more yards in addition to a 98 -yard kickoff return on the Panthers' opening possession. On the season, the Pioneers have allowed 42 plays of 20 yards or longer. On a per-play average, Malone is giving 6.0 yards per play, including a 7.8 yard average on pass plays. The Pioneers will need to improve upon those numbers against a West Alabama offense that averaged over 6.0 yards per play in each of their last four games.
 
Pioneers to Watch on Saturday
Offense: The offensive line will have its hands full on Saturday with a defense that has recorded 27 sacks. Chris Henke, the only senior on offense, will make his final collegiate start at center. Quarterback John Iacucci will need to find Dulin and Alex Stotts in the passing game if the Tigers bottled up Blasiole and Damon Williams in the run game.
 
Defense: The play of the defensive line will also be key on Saturday against an offense that has thrown for over 2800 yards and run for 1500 more. Senior defensive ends Austin Cary and Jesse Correll will need to generate a pass rush while Tyler Bowman and Drew Shreve clog the middle from their defensive tackle positions. Fellow senior JC Pawlyk will make his final collegiate start at an outside linebacker position while Ryan Weber anchors the middle. Weber is the G-MAC leader in tackles with 72 on the season.

2016 Malone Pioneers: Roster | Schedule | Stats | Staff
 
Who is West Alabama
The Tigers enter the weekend ranked 9th in the NCAA DII Super Region Two and will need a strong showing vs. Malone to move up into playoff contention. The 6-4 record is deceptive considering that UWA's has lost a game to a Division I opponent and two more to nationally –ranked DII teams. #23 Valdosta State defeated the Tigers 37-22 last weekend.
 
Former UWA record-breaking quarterback Brett Gilliland is in his third season as the head coach of the Tigers, mentoring an offense that has put up over 30 points five times this season. West Alabama's opportunistic defense ranks 7th in the nation with 27 forced turnovers, but still gives up 400 yards a game.
 
Tigers to Watch
Offense: Senior gunslinger Austin Grammer completes 64.0% of his passes and leads the nation in completions per game (27.9). Grammer is 10th in the nation in passing with 298 yards per game. Playmaking wide receiver Donta Armstong is third in the nation in receptions (79) and leads the team with 800 yards receiving. Armstrong is also a weapon in the return game, averaging close to 14 yards a return.
 
Defense: Sophomore pass-rusher Darius Ellis leads the Tigers with 9.5 sacks and two forced fumbles. Ellis has 19 tackles in the backfield resulting in 102 lost yards. Nine different players have recorded an interception for the Tigers including Dee Virgin who leads the team with three picks and Se'quan Steele who has a team-high 12 pass breakups.

West Alabama Tigers: Roster | Schedule | Stats 

By the Numbers
811 - Shortest distance in miles (according to Google Maps) required to travel between Malone and West Alabama
746 - Distance in miles between Malone and Michigan Tech—the farthest trip the Pioneers made in 2015
46 - Passes attempted by John Iacucci last week against Kentucky Wesleyan. It was the most pass attempts by a Malone quarterback since Steve Brohl attempted 47 in 2009
23 - Sacks allowed by the Malone O-line this season. The Pioneers gave up just two sacks in Iacucci's 48 dropbacks last week
5 - Non-offensive touchdowns allowed by the Pioneers this season. Malone gave up a kickoff return and a fumble return for touchdown last week