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Tripp leads Redmen to first win

ESCANABA – Senior quarterback Scott Tripp provided valuable leadership in the fourth quarter Friday night as the Marquette Redmen rallied for a 28-21 football triumph over the Escanaba Eskymos.

Tripp ran for a pair of touchdowns in the final 10 minutes, 14 seconds of the Great Northern Conference opener, leading the Redmen to their first victory in four games this season.

“The ball was in Scott’s hands and he made plays,” Marquette coach Dave L’Huillier said. “We didn’t run the ball very effectively in the first three quarters, but we had a consistent running game in the fourth quarter.

“This is a huge win for our kids. They just worked so hard all summer. They dug deep and found a way to win.”

Tripp scored the game-winner on a 39-yard keeper around left end with 5:09 remaining, three plays into a drive which began on the Esky 46.

Esky (2-2), however, didn’t let the Redmen off the hook that easily.

The Eskymos, starting their final drive from inside their 20-yard line, marched to the Marquette 1 with less than a minute remaining.

An illegal procedure penalty, however, pushed them back to the 6 with seven seconds left. Senior QB Logan Lamb’s pass then fell incomplete as time expired.

“We have to give the Marquette kids credit for finding a way to win,”?Esky coach David Howes said. “Tripp is a heck of a player.”

Esky led 21-14 after the third quarter. Tripp, however, pulled the Redmen to within a point on a 19-yard burst through the middle with 8:42 left in the contest, finishing a drive that started from the Esky 43.

The Eskymos, who trailed 14-7 at halftime, opened the third quarter with a nine-play, 81-yard drive.

On the final play of that drive, Lamb broke a few tackles and scampered into the end zone from 10 yards to pull Esky even at 14 midway through the period.

After Marquette then went three and out, Esky took its only lead at 21-14 with 2:32 remaining in the third when Lamb tossed a 37-yard aerial through the middle to C.J. Barron.

The Redmen opened the scoring early in the second frame on Tripp’s 40-yard pass to senior wide receiver Pat Burmeister.

Marquette regained the lead, 14-7, on junior Alex DuVall’s 76-yard kickoff return along the right sideline.

“We made some adjustments at halftime and when we went up by seven points, we were feeling pretty good,” Howes said. “Field position really hurt us in the fourth quarter and their kickoff return before the half killed us.”

“Escanaba had a great start in the third quarter, but our kids didn’t put their heads down,” L’Huillier said. “They responded well in the fourth quarter.”

Marquette finished with 158 yards in total offense.

The Redmen rushed for 88. Tripp got 64 on 13 carries, a majority of those coming in the fourth quarter. He was 5-of-15 passing for 70 yards and a TD with an interception.

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