The Ave Maria University football team could not keep with the No. 10 team in the nation on Saturday afternoon, falling 46-3 to St. Xavier University at Deaton Field in Chicago. The Gyrenes have lost to the Cougars two seasons in a row, narrowly losing a 24-21 decision last year in Ave Maria.
 
St. Xavier led the Gyrenes 32-0 at halftime, powered by three rushing touchdowns from Dan Ladd, all of which came from two yards and in. The Cougars added two touchdowns in the third quarter, both coming from longer than 35 yards from the goal line, before the Gyrenes closed the scoring on a 37 yard field goal from Brandon Leon just over three minutes into the fourth quarter.
 
Ave Maria quarterbacks Matthew Kreichman and Bob Orban combined to throw for over 200 yards, led by the 130 yards on 11-of-23 passing from Kreichman. Kreichman led the Gyrenes on their scoring drive, throwing a 32-yard pass on third down and five in Gyrene territory to Nic Mendelsburg to set up Leon's kick. Mendelsburg's 32 yard catch was the longest play of the day for Ave Maria.
 
Between the two signal callers, Ave Maria threw for 214 yards on 46 attempts. Passing accounted for over 100 percent of the Gyrene offensive yards due to negative yards rushing on 27 carries.
 
Both Gyrene quarterbacks sought out Xavier Roberts, who pulled in nine receptions for 84 yards. Including his yards as a kick returner, Roberts recorded 103 all-purpose yards in the losing effort to the nationally ranked Cougars. Roberts was one of nine Gyrenes to record a catch against St. Xavier.
 
Despite surrendering over 350 yards of offense, the Gyrenes did have some quality performances on the defensive side of the ball. Junior linebacker Ayshad Thornton registered 13 tackles, including seven solo efforts. Junior defensive lineman Sterling Mack had two tackles for loss and a forced fumble, while junior DB Andre Antoine recorded five tackles with the lone Ave Maria interception.
 
For the Cougars, tailback Jamarri Watson ran for 115 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries, while quarterback Alex Martinez tossed for
161 yards and a touchdown of his own.
 
After falling to 0-2, the Gyrenes return to the AMU Football Field next Saturday for a contest with the NCAA Division III LaGrange Panthers. Kickoff in Ave Maria is set for noon.