NEW ULM, Minn. - The Martin Luther College football team lost its season opener Saturday against Maranatha Baptist University by the score of 20-7.

The Knights fell behind 14-0 in the first half, and the Sabercats added to the lead with six more points on their opening drive of the second half to put the Knights at a 20-0 deficit. 

MBU generated much of its offense with the help of scrambling quarterback Jonah Bueltel. Bueltel completed 22 of 31 passes for 144 yards and two touchdowns in the game, and also ran for 67 yards on six carries to keep the chanins moving. 

MLC showed signs of life offensively midway through the third quarter, capping a three-play drive that went 50 yards in 39 seconds, culminating in a 15-yard touchdown pass from T.J. Babinec to Josh Arndt to cut the MBU lead to 20-7.

The defense was able to hold the Sabercats scoreless the rest of the way, but MLC's offense was unable to generate any more points to cut further into the deficit. 

The Knights outgained the Sabercats 352-304 for the game, including a 198-160 advantage on the ground. Josh Wong led all players with 113 yards on 13 carries. Joe Rodewald added 39 yards rushing, while Arndt led all players with 77 yards receiving on six catches and one touchdown. 

Babinec completed 12 of 28 passes for 154 yards and one score.

Defensively, Dan Schmidt led the way for the Knights with ten tackles, including one tackle for loss. Chris Dean assisted on eight tackles and finished with 1.5 tackles for loss. Tom Keller, Keith Brassow and Joseph Herrewig each finished with seven tackles.

MLC fell to 0-1 in defeat, while MBU opened its season with a 1-0 record.

The Knights will return to action on Saturday, September 10, when they travel to Eureka for a game scheduled to start at 1 p.m.