ROLLA, Mo. – After letting an 11-point lead with 6:27 to play slip away and coming from behind twice to extend the game, Missouri S&T ended up on the short end of a 44-41 decision to Saint Joseph's in double overtime Saturday on Hall of Fame Day at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.

Terrance Freeman's 23-yard touchdown run – his fifth scoring run of the afternoon – won the game for the Pumas in the second overtime after S&T had taken the lead on its possession in the second extra period.

The Miners appeared to be in good shape to win their home opener as they led 28-17 after Chad Shockley (St. James, Mo./John F. Hodge)'s 36-yard scoring catch with 6:27 remaining on the clock. However, the Pumas came back and scored 14 points without the Miner offense touching the football to move in front and force S&T to make a rally of its own.

Saint Joseph's got a completion from Mike Hladik to Robert Dutton on a third-and-15 for 29 yards to keep the drive going, then Dutton hauled in a nine-yard scoring pass to cut the lead to five at 28-23 after a failed two-point conversion attempt.

On the ensuing kickoff, the Pumas forced a fumble and got the ball at the S&T 28. Freeman carried the ball on the next three plays and took the third one into the end zone to put Saint Joe's on top; a two-point try was successful to make it a three-point lead.

The Miners got the ball back with 2:23 to go and quickly moved into Puma territory, crossing midfield on an 11-yard run by quarterback Jason Schlueter (Lafayette, Ind./McCutcheon). Moments later, Schlueter connected with Shockley for 14 yards to move the ball to the 17-yard line, but the drive stalled at that spot and Joe Drahos (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Washington) hit a 34-yard field goal with 35 seconds remaining to knot the game at 31.

Saint Joseph's had a chance to win the game, but Kevin Quackenbush's 49-yard field goal attempt as time expired in regulation time went wide to the right.

The Pumas got the ball first in overtime and covered the 25 yards in seven plays to move back in front. Hladik completed a third down pass to Dutton to keep the drive going and Freeman went in from the four to put the visitors up 38-31.

When it got its turn with the ball, S&T got down to the Pumas' one-yard line in two plays – a 13-yard run by Bobby Pettis (Hickory Hills, Ill./Argo) and an 11-yard completion to Shockley – but needed a fourth down run by Schlueter to get into the end zone as he leaped over a defender to clear the goal line. Drahos hit the extra point to tie the score.

The Miners opened the second overtime by moving to the five-yard line, but had to settle for a 22-yard field goal from Drahos. On the second play of the Saint Joseph's possession, Freeman swept to the right, ran down the sideline and just got inside the pylon for the game-winning score.

Saint Joe's opened the scoring on Freeman's first touchdown run of the afternoon, but the Miners came back and evened the score on a two-yard scoring run by Pettis with 3:14 left in the first period. Schlueter put the Miners on top by connecting with Shockley on a 27-yard scoring toss early in the second period, then ran in a two-point conversion to give S&T a 15-7 lead that it would take to the locker room.

The Miners missed a chance to add onto the lead when they fumbled near the goal line, then turnovers became a key part of the story in the second half.

The first came when Bill Perry picked off a pass and ran it back to the S&T 10, setting up a one-yard touchdown run by Freeman. Just before the third quarter ended, Quackenbush hit a 24-yard field goal to put the Pumas up 17-15 after another Miner fumble that gave the ball to Saint Joseph's.

S&T regained the lead on a thrilling 45-yard scoring run by Curterris Golden (Chicago, Ill./John Hope), as he eluded tacklers along the way to collect his first collegiate touchdown.   After the defense got a three-and-out, the Miners put together a nine-play, 85-yard drive that took over five minutes off the clock and culminated with Shockley's second touchdown catch of the afternoon.

Shockley finished the day with 12 catches for 174 yards, while Bryan Crider (Jefferson City, Mo./Helias) caught nine balls for 83 yards. Schlueter threw for a career-high 392 yards (S&T finished with 403 yards through the air) with 32 completions in 45 attempts, while Golden ran for 111 yards on just eight carries.

The Miners had 580 yards of total offense for the day to 504 for the Pumas. Freeman did most of the damage on the ground for Saint Joseph's with 168 yards, while Jashon Banks ran for another 106 and Hladik threw for 228.

Brian Jordan (Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood Central) finished with 17 tackles to head the defense while Steve Edwards (Springfield, Ill./Sacred Heart Griffin) recorded 16 stops.

S&T (0-2) will host Wisconsin-Stevens Point next Saturday at 1 p.m. at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.