DUBUQUE, Iowa – Football took the field against Clarke University on Saturday for the first time as a ranked program.
The No. 15-ranked Ravens forced 5 turnovers against the Pride, the final of which iced the game for Benedictine, en route to a 36-18 win.
Saturday's meeting between the two programs marked the fourth between the two programs and with their final score, the Ravens have outscored the Pride 215-32 over those four meetings.
Two of the five forced turnovers led directly to points for the Ravens. A first-quarter interception by Lamont Shamburger led to the first score of the game of the Ravens on a 3-yard rush from Rayshon Mills. The Ravens second interception of the game during the fourth quarter by Fabian Njika was returned by Njika for a 40-yard touchdown.
Benedictine opened the game with 20 straight points which led to a 20-0 lead at the half. Jacob Gathright scored on a 15-yard pass from Garrett Kettle before Mills add his second touchdown of the game, a 5-yard rush, with 33 seconds left before halftime.
The only scoring of the third quarter for the Ravens came on a blocked point after attempt. After the Raven broke through and blocked the PAT, Jackson Hoskins picked up the ball and returned it 97 yards for a 2-point conversion.
The Pride pulled within 10 points in the fourth quarter before Kettle found Reed Levi for a 6-yard touchdown pass and Njika returned his interception for the final points of the game for the Ravens.
Mills led the Ravens rushing attack with 43 yards off 12 carries. Kettle finished with 266 yards through the air of 19 of 32 completions. Kettle connected on passes to five receivers, led by JaShawn Todd with 91 yards off 7 catches. Gathright finished with 67 yards on 4 catches while Austin Buteaux added 79 yards on 2 receptions,
Defensively, the Ravens finished with 9 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks, 3 fumble recovers, and 2 interceptions. Javhi Bloomquist led the Ravens with 7 tackles with a forced fumble. Josh Morris and Joe Glaser had 6 tackles each with Morris getting credit for a sack and tackle for a loss. Glaser added 2 tackles for a loss. Hoskins added 5 tackles to go along with his PAT return.
The Ravens return home on Saturday to take on Graceland University at 1 p.m. on O'Malley Field as part of Benedictine's annual Family Weekend.
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