St. Olaf Retains Goat Trophy, Defeats Carleton 27-20

Dan Dobson threw for 324 yards and two touchdowns as the St. Olaf football team held off crosstown rival Carleton College for a 27-20 win on Saturday at Carleton's Laird Stadium. 

Dobson went 16-of-23 on the day, highlighted by a 57-yard touchdown pass to Jake Schmiesing with 9:53 to go in the third quarter. Schmiesing finished with two catches for 74 yards. 

The Knights (3-4, 1-4 MIAC) came back late and managed to score two fourth quarter touchdowns, including a 2-yard run by Andy Zweber with 1:21 remaining in the game, but the Oles (6-2, 4-2 MIAC)recovered the ensuing onside kick to seal the victory. 

Michael Thai had two first half touchdowns for St. Olaf, catching a 4-yard Dobson pass in the first quarter and later rushing in from one yard out with 14:57 to go in the second. In addition to rushing for 95 yards on 18 carries, Thai added four catches for 63 more, including a 54-yard reception on a screen pass in the second quarter. 

Carleton's attack was led by receiver C.J. Dale, who hauled in nine catches for 130 yards, including a game-tying, 53-yard touchdown pass from Mike Hartwell with 4:10 remaining in the first quarter. 

Hartwell, who entered the action following an injury to starting quarterback Conor Lynch, finished 25-of-35 for 264 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. 

Defensively, the Oles were led by Nick Nazarian, who made eight tackles. Ben Dobson and Erick Marigi each added seven more, and Chad Curry came up with an interception. 

Lucas Wainman rounded out the Oles' scoring with a pair of field goals, connecting on kicks of 21- and 31-yards. 

The Oles' victory extends their winning streak against Carleton to three games, ensuring that the Goat Trophy will remain on the Hill for another year. 

St. Olaf is off next week before facing Bethel University on Nov. 3 at Manitou Field. 

Editor's note: This article is written by Thomas Lambert and originally appeared on the St. Olaf Sports Information website.