ST. LOUIS – Welcoming the No. 2-ranked team in the NAIA is always a tall task and it was no different for Missouri Baptist football on Saturday at CBC's Ross Stadium. The Spartans showed glimpses against the visiting Knights, but came up empty in the MSFA Mideast League matchup as they fell to Marian, 42-0.
 
MBU football dropped to 3-7 overall and 1-4 in the ultra-competitive MSFA Mideast League. With the win, Marian is 9-0 on the year and poised for a deep run in the NAIA Football Championship Series. The Knights extended their current winning streak to 12 games, which dates back to Oct. 28, 2017.
 
Quarterback Chase Brown, he reigning MSFA Mideast League Offensive Player of the Week had very little time in the pocket to make decisions and got off to a slow start against the stout Marian defense. Following a Brown pass that was high-pointed and intercepted by MU's AJ Edwards, Marian scored on the next play in the form of a 76-yard pass from Luke Johnston to Johnny William to get the scoring started.  
 
The Spartans put together a strong drive on its next possession with a balanced running and passing attack and got all the way to the MU 17 and inside the redzone on a Chase Brown pass to Chris Baldwin. MBU, which has been extremely efficient in the redzone this season and has scored on 84.6 percent of its trips, missed on its first opportunity of the day. The Spartans were unable to answer with points of their own as kicker Ethan Metzler pushed his 34-yard attempt wide right.
 
MU got its offense rolling in the second quarter and put points on the board in back-to-back drives via a Wesley Cook 14-yard rushing TD and a 44-yard TD through the air to Greg Miller.
 
The Knights' next two drives were victims to the stopped short by the Spartans' turnover happy defense. Ranked No. 9 in the NAIA in turnover margin at +10, Missouri Baptist recorded a pair of interceptions by defensive backs Michael Malone and Jaylen Cowley to improve that number to +11 heading into the season finale next week.
 
After taking a 21-0 lead into halftime, No. 2 Marian put the game away in the third quarter with three quick scoring drives of 60+ yards. The Knights ran seven minutes off the clock in its only drive of the fourth quarter, but was held scoreless in the final period. The 42-point win for Marian was 27 points fewer than its average margin of victory against the Spartans from 2015-17.
 
Junior running back Chris Baldwin was in large part held in check with 14 carries for 53 yards. QB Chase Brown added 40 yards on the ground to his 95 yards passing. Tight end Anthony Taele led the Spartans in receptions (4) and yards (39).
 
On defense, Jaylen Cowley had a record-breaking day with 20 total tackles, including 13 solo stops. It breaks a mark that was set in the first year of the program (2014) by Andrew Mahone, who had 16 tackles in a game against William Penn. In addition to the 20 tackles, Cowley also registered his second takeaway of the season with the interception in the second quarter. Linebackers Zack Kern and Collin Thomas each had six tackles apiece.
 
The Spartans will celebrate Senior Day next week in the final game of the season as they welcome Taylor University (3-6, 1-4 MSFA Mideast) to CBC's Ross Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.