Box Score ROLLA, Mo. – Saint Joseph's put the first big play on the scoreboard Saturday afternoon at Allgood-Bailey Stadium, but it was Missouri S&T who made the big plays in the fourth quarter as it rallied for a 14-13 Great Lakes Valley Conference victory.

The Miners overcame a 13-point halftime deficit after reserve quarterback Peter Simpson (St. Louis, Mo./Lindbergh) threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Nick Taylor (Wichita, Kan./Southeast HS) with 8:22 remaining, then the S&T defense picked off four Puma passes in the final 6:37 of play to secure the win – the first back-to-back victories for the Miners this season.

Things didn't start out so well for S&T as on the first play after the opening kickoff, Kobi Cook took a handoff, went around the left side of the line and got loose in the secondary, racing down the sideline for a 62-yard touchdown run to give the Pumas an immediate 6-0 lead.

However, Gavin Voss missed the extra point – a miss that would prove costly before the afternoon ended.

S&T drove right back on its initial possession to the Saint Joseph's 20-yard line, but it ended with a turnover when Reed Brown (Rogers, Ark./Heritage HS) fumbled while being sacked by Andrew Soulis.  The Miners had another scoring chance early in the second quarter, but Adam Peden (Bloomington, Ill./Bloomington) pushed a 45-yard field goal try wide to the left.

Saint Joseph's extended its lead with a 10-play, 72-yard drive after the missed field goal attempt, a drove that concluded with a three-yard touchdown run by GLVC rushing leader Braxton Shelton.

S&T, who finished the first half with just 119 yards of total offense and lost Brown to an injury in the latter stages of the second quarter, finally created a break early in the second half to cut into the SJC lead.

On the Pumas' first possession of the second half, Dan Mauszycki (Gardner, Kan./Gardner-Edgerton HS) recovered a Shelton fumble at the Saint Joseph's 39-yard line.  From there, the Miners drove to the three-yard line and Chris Kennard (Plano, Texas/Parish Episcopal) crashed over the goal line from there to trim the Puma lead to 13-7.

Later in the third quarter, the Miners nearly scored the tying touchdown when Simpson raced out of the pocket and ran into a group of defenders near the goal line, but had the ball knocked loose and SJC linebacker Gary Yeoman recovered the fumble on the one-yard line.

The teams would trade punts on the next three possessions, then the Miners embarked on their game-winning drive after the second Puma punt of the sequence.

Following a 22-yard pass to Melvin Stovall (Los Angeles, Calif./Lancaster) to get into Saint Joseph's territory, Simpson hit Taylor down the sideline for the go-ahead touchdown pass with 8:22 remaining.   Taylor was flagged for an excessive celebration penalty following the score, but the Pumas elected to take the penalty on the kickoff – and Peden hit the extra point to put the Miners in front.

Saint Joseph's got the ball at its own 33-yard line after the ensuing kickoff and moved quickly into Miner territory, reaching the 17-yard line after a 14-yard run by Cook.  But on the next play, Will Brown (Hazelwood, Mo./Hazelwood West) picked off a quick screen pass to halt the drive.

It would be the first of four straight interceptions recorded by the S&T defense at the close of the contest.   The next came after SJC quarterback Billy VandeMerkt had to leave the game with an injury following a sack by Jacob Nutt (Pacific, Mo./Pacific), as backup Tate Borlik on his first snap when Chris McKay (Flint, Mich./Carman-Ainsworth HS) picked off a throw down the middle of the field.

S&T also got interceptions on the Pumas' final two possessions from Sean Martin (South Holland, Ill./Seton Academy) and Mark Hopkins (Chicago, Ill./Whitney Young) to wrap up the win.

The Miners won the yardage battle over the Pumas by a 288-279 margin.  Simpson went 12-of-19 for 177 yards off the bench after Brown had completed 10 of his 17 throws for 72 yards.  

S&T's running game was held in check for the bulk of the afternoon with a net total of only 39 yards against the nation's 11^th-ranked run defense, while the Pumas (5-2, 2-1 GLVC) finished with 168 on the ground – but only 106 after the opening play run by Cook, who ended up with 109 on the afternoon.

Chris Horn (Tulsa, Okla./Booker T. Washington) and Chris Emesih (Houston, Texas/Westfield) both reached double figures in the tackle department with 12 and 10, respectively, while the Miners ended up with five sacks to go along with the four interceptions.

Missouri S&T, who improved to 3-4 overall and 2-1 in the GLVC with the win, will play on the road next Saturday against Truman State in Kirksville, Mo.  The Bulldogs stayed in a tie with Indianapolis atop the league standings after holding off McKendree 28-21 Saturday.  Kickoff will be at 1 p.m.