NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The St. Olaf College football team cut a 43-23 deficit to 43-37 with 9:45 remaining, but Gustavus Adolphus College returned the ensuing kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown and went on to claim a 49-37 victory on Saturday afternoon at Klein Field at Manitou.

Gustavus (6-3, 5-2 MIAC) scored three-straight touchdowns to take a 43-23 lead seven seconds into the fourth quarter before St. Olaf (4-5, 3-4 MIAC) scored touchdowns 3:13 apart to make it a one-score game with 9:45 to go. After the Oles' scored to make it 43-37, Dalton Thelen ran the kickoff back 93 yards to get it back to a two-score game and help send the Gusties to the win.

With the loss, St. Olaf finished as the No. 4 seed in the Northwoods Division and will host Macalester College in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Championship Week on Saturday, Nov. 12 at 1 p.m. The Oles won the regular-season meeting, 38-32, in St. Paul in the MIAC opener for both teams back on Sept. 24.

Sophomore Theo Doran was 21-for-39 for a career-high 352 yards with a career-high-tying four touchdowns and two interceptions for St. Olaf, connecting with junior tight end Derek Hansen and senior Payton Schott for two scores apiece. Hansen had the first 100-yard game of his career, hauling in six receptions for a game-high 136 yards, while Schott had his second two-touchdown game of the season with six catches for 92 yards.

The Oles were unable to get their running game going, however, rushing for just 69 yards on 29 attempts (2.4 yards per rush). The Gusties, meanwhile, ran for 164 yards – 113 by Rohee Konde – and averaged 5.3 yards per rush in the win. George Sandven threw five touchdowns and no interceptions for Gustavus, going 23-for-35 for 282 yards on the afternoon.

After the St. Olaf defense forced a three-and-out on the opening drive of the game, the Oles needed just three plays to take an early lead, scoring on 50-yard catch-and-run up the left sideline by Hansen. Later in the quarter, Gustavus took advantage of a short field after a blocked punt to score on a 26-yard pass from Sandven to Thelen to tie the game at 7-7.

St. Olaf answered just 42 seconds later, however, to take the lead back with a two-play, 75-yard drive. Doran found sophomore Braden Menz for a 28-yard pass followed by a pass interference penalty that got the Oles into Gustavus territory. Doran proceeded to hit an open Schott in the end zone from 32 yards out for the pair's first touchdown connection of the game.

The Gusties evened the game at 14-14 after one quarter on a 29-yard pass from Sandven to Matthew Kipper, but St. Olaf responded with back-to-back field goals by junior Collin Swan in the second quarter to go ahead, 20-14, midway through the quarter. Gustavus took a 23-20 lead into the locker room by scoring the final nine points of the half.

Swan's third field goal of the game – a 28-yarder – four minutes into the third quarter produced the fourth tie of the game, but Sandven found three different receivers for touchdowns in the space of 6:57 of game time to give the Gusties a 43-23 lead very early in the fourth.

Schott made a one-handed grab on a seven-yard touchdown catch from Doran three minutes into the fourth quarter before the St. Olaf defense forced a three-and-out to get the ball back to the offense. The Oles made it a one-score game on a 23-yard pass from Doran to Hansen that came the play after they hooked up for a 19-yard play.

Gustavus responded at the next opportunity, as Thelen got loose up the St. Olaf sideline for a 93-yard kickoff return just 13 seconds after Hansen's second touchdown catch of the game. The Oles got inside the 10-yard line on their next possession before a fumble gave the ball back to the Gusties, who were able to see out the win.

Junior Luke Stanga had a game-high nine tackles (seven solo) for St. Olaf, which also got six tackles and 2.5 tackles for a loss from sophomore Tate Sauerwein. Juniors Cohl Husbands and Ben Kettelhut recovered fumbles forced by junior Cameron Hammonds and first year Alijah Cruel.