ST. PAUL, Minn. – The St. Olaf College football team held off Macalester College for a 38-32 victory in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) opener for both teams on Saturday night at Macalester Stadium.

St. Olaf (2-1, 1-0 MIAC) scored on five-straight possessions spanning halftime to open up a 30-18 lead and got the eventual game-winning touchdown from sophomore Theo Doran to sophomore Derek Hansen from 18 yards out with 1:33 remaining to hand Macalester (2-1, 0-1 MIAC) its first loss of the season. The win was the Oles' 11th in a row in the series and their 18th in the last 19 meetings since 1989.

Sophomore Christian Graske had his third-straight game with multiple touchdowns for St. Olaf, carrying the ball 13 times for 100 yards and a pair of scores, while senior Jordan Embry ran for 132 yards on 24 carries.

Doran was 16-for-25 for 228 yards and three touchdowns, connecting with Hansen for a pair of scores and senior Payton Schott for another. Schott had five receptions for 95 yards and a touchdown in the win, as the Oles compiled 461 yards of total offense and averaged over seven yards per play.

Defensively, juniors Mark Thrower and Jacob Halek each had interceptions for the Oles, who outrushed the Scots by a 233-99 margin in the game. Thrower also tied classmate Ben Hestorff for the team lead with five tackles in the game.

The Scots got on the board first on a 50-yard catch-and-run from Michael Nadeau to Nick Bice with 6:39 to go in the first quarter. The strike was the first of Nadeau's five passing touchdowns in the game, as he went 26-for-41 for 329 yards through the air. St. Olaf blocked the ensuing extra point and nearly ran it back for two points, but Macalester's Logan Pampel hauled down sophomore Azariah Williams inside the five-yard line.

Graske returned the ensuing kickoff 65 yards to set up St. Olaf at the Macalester 33-yard line and the Oles covered the 33 yards in four running plays to take the lead, as Graske scored from five yards out just 1:20 after the Scots' opening touchdown.

After a three-and-out for the St. Olaf defense, the offense marched 70 yards in nine plays, capped by a 10-yard pass from Doran to Hansen to make it a 14-6 game with 1:10 left in the opening quarter. Macalester got within two at 14-12 on its next possession when Nadeau connected with Bice again, this time for a 19-yard touchdown with 12:00 to go until halftime. The Scots attempted to tie the game with a two-point conversion but could not convert.

St. Olaf covered 75 yards in five plays for its third-straight touchdown drive to go up 21-12 on a 46-yard strike from Doran to Schott for the duo's third scoring connection of the season. On their next drive, the Oles pushed their lead to 24-12 at the half thanks to a 29-yard field goal by junior Collin Swan. St. Olaf had 262 yards of total offense in the opening half – 124 rushing and 139 passing – and averaged 7.5 yards per play.

After Thrower picked off a pass in the final minute of the first half, Halek made it three-straight games with an interception on Macalester's opening possession of the second half to set up St. Olaf in Scots' territory, leading to a two-yard touchdown run by Graske to give the Oles their largest lead of the night at 31-12.

Macalester scored the next two touchdowns on passes of two and 17 yards from Nadeau to Ty Bruckner to make it a 31-26 game with 5:25 remaining, but Hestorff stopped Nadeau on a keeper on the two-point conversion on the second touchdown to keep the Scots needing a touchdown rather than a field goal.

After a short kickoff, Graske broke off a 27-yard run on the first play from scrimmage to put St. Olaf at the Macalester 37-yard line. Later in the possession, Doran found Scott on a crossing route for a nine-yard gain on fourth and five at the 31-yard line to keep the drive alive. As the drive continued, Doran found Hansen for an 18-yard touchdown on third and six with 1:33 to go to make it a two-possession game.

The Scots would not go quietly, however, as Nadeau and Bruckner connected on a 47-yard pass play on the second play of the next drive to help set up a two-yard touchdown from Nadeau to Michael Poker on fourth and goal with 37 seconds remaining, leaving the score at 38-32 after another blocked extra point. Junior Deonta Thomas recovered the ensuing onside kick uncontested to seal the win.

St. Olaf was penalized 10 times for 98 yards in the game, while Macalester committed just three infractions for 28 yards. The Oles were 6-for-12 on third down and 2-for-3 on fourth down, while the Scots were 9-for-15 on third down and 2-for-2 on fourth down.

Next up for St. Olaf is a home game against Augsburg University on Saturday, Oct. 1 as part of Homecoming and Family Weekend. Kickoff is at 1 p.m. at Klein Field at Manitou.