COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. - The Martin Luther College football team was unable to keep pace with the Johnnies of Saint John's University (SJU) in a 55-7 defeat on Saturday.

The Johnnies entered the game ranked number-seven in the nation in this week's D3football.com poll and showed their quality early, scoring twice in the first quarter to take a 14-0 lead.

MLC had two chances in the first quarter thanks to their special teams setting the offense up with field position inside the SJU red zone, but the Knights could not convert fourth down chances on either possession.

The defense got the Knights on the scoreboard early in the second quarter, when cornerback Ben Arndt intercepted a pass and returned it 22 yards for a touchdown to cut the deficit to 14-7.

It was all SJU from that point, as their balanced offense finished with 554 total yards (301 through the air and 253 on the ground), while the defense held the MLC ground game (averaging 345.0 yards per game through the first two weeks) to 88 rushing yards.

The Knights did their best to get the passing game going, as Max Nordlie completed 10 of 18 passes, but the Johnnies held them to 73 yards through the air, as well. Mason Cox led the Knights with three catches for 37 yards, while Jack Vogel added three catches for 25 yards.

MLC had a number of chances to gain momentum on offense with drives that started strong, but turned the ball over on downs four times inside the SJU 30-yard line, and finished the game 3-14 on third downs against the stingy Johnnies' defense. 

Aiden Holien led the defense with 10 total tackles. Arndt's interception was his third of the season, and moved him into a tie for second place in program history with 14 career interceptions. 

MLC fell to 1-2 on the season in defeat. SJU improved to 2-0 with the win.

The Knights will return home next week to host Alma College in a game scheduled to start at 1 p.m.