Turnovers prove to be Vikings’ downfall in Illinois

The Viking football team traveled to Lake Forest to battle the Foresters in its fifth conference game of the season Saturday, Oct. 10. The game promised to be an intense matchup, with both teams owning a winless record and both sides desperate to win.
Things went south for the Vikings just five minutes into the game when their senior quarterback, Nick Maxam, threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown by Lake Forest’s Tanner Compton. The Vikings replied in kind three minutes into the second quarter, with senior linebacker Brian Janssen picking off Forester quarterback Geoff Sobey and returning it for a touchdown of his own.
With four minutes left in the first half, Vikings quarterback Sam Ausloos tossed an interception to Foresters defensive back Will Christensen, setting up a quick scoring drive for Lake Forest. The Foresters broke the tie with a 9-yard pass from Sobey to receiver Brock Stenberg to make the game 14-7 in favor of the Forresters going into halftime.
Turnovers continued to be costly, as the Vikings fumbled twice in the third quarter, with both fumbles leading to scores for the Foresters. Sobey stretched the Forester lead to 14 with an 11-yard pass to Dan Carter halfway through the third quarter and struck again with a 31-yard pass to receiver Pat Jarvis with 14:52 left in the fourth quarter.
The Vikings put another seven points on the board with a touchdown from Maxam to Nick Thackston with seven minutes left in the game, but came no closer to closing the scoring gap that the Foresters had set up. While the Vikings’ 14-point loss was a season best, Lake Forest’s 21 points off of turnovers proved too much to overcome.
The Vikings host the Knox College Prairie Fire Saturday, Oct. 17 in the Banta Bowl. The game is significant, as Lawrence is celebrating its Hall of Fame weekend with an induction ceremony Friday night and the football game at 1 p.m. Saturday.