Southern Virginia recorded eight tackles for loss and two sacks in the win. Earlham athletics photo

Lucas Morley scored two touchdowns and a key two-point conversion as Catholic rallied in overtime, extending McDaniel's losing streak to 20 consecutive games. Catholic University athletics photo

Southern Virginia snapped an 11-game losing streak and Maranatha Baptist did something it hasn't done for three years on Saturday as the 2016 Division III football season got underway in earnest.

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Neil Davis intercepted three passses and the Southern Virginia defense limited Earlham to 12-for-32 passing on the afternoon as the Knights defeated Earlham 28-18 in Joe DuPaix's first game as head coach. 

"Our defense played lights out all day long," DuPaix said. "I'm proud of our guys for fighting through and playing each and every play."

Earlham, which has lost 24 in a row, managed just 19 yards on 22 rushing attempts.

Maranatha Baptist snapped a three-season losing streak to Division III opponents and got its 2016 season off on the right foot with a 20-7 win at Martin Luther. The Sabercats won the battle of small rosters as Jonah Bueltel threw two touchdown passes and Frankie Martinez ran for 86 yards and another score in the win. The last time Maranatha defeated a Division III opponent was in the 2013 season opener, also vs. Martin Luther.

For Grove City, however, the streak continued, spanning into a new head coach. Joel Reighard picked off a pass in the end zone with less than 10 seconds remaining to play as Juniata survived a late Grove City drive and defeated the Wolverines 31-26. It's Grove City's 21st consecutive loss, the first under alumnus Andrew DiDonato. 

The streak continued for McDaniel as well. Catholic trailed McDaniel 21-6 with 3:30 left in regulation, without the ball. But Catholic's Justin Paige blocked a punt and Jake Marcelino took it into the end zone for a touchdown, then the Cardinals forced a three-and-out. Jorge Pola, making his first start at quarterback, drove the Cardinals 76 yards, finishing with a touchdown pass to Lucas Morley and a two-point conversion pass to Morley as well to send it to an extra session. Pola and Morley hooked up one final time for the game-winner in overtime and the Cardinals' defense held on four downs from the 4-yard line for the 28-21 win. It was McDaniel's 20th consecutive defeat.

Union's losing streak extended to 12 games and Ithaca won its season opener for the 19th consecutive season as the Bombers topped the Dutchmen 14-9. The big play came on the opening snap of the fourth quarter, as sophomore Pat Minogue forced a fumble and junior Jordan Schemm scooped-and-scored on a 54-yard return to put the Bombers up, 14-3.

Ferrum came back from a 21-0 deficit, 31-15 in the fourth quarter, and defeated Emory & Henry 39-38. It was the career head coaching debut for Ferrum's Rob Grande, who spent the past 11 years as an assistant coach at Emory & Henry. Ferrum tied the game at 31-31 with 1:17 left to play on two fourth-quarter touchdowns and a pair of two-point conversions. Emory & Henry's Kendrick Kube then returned a kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown to put the Wasps out in front 38-31 with 1:00 showing on the clock. The Panthers then marched 68 yards in five plays, capped by Harvey Taylor's bullet scoring pass to Johnny White to make it 38-37. Taylor converted the go-ahead two-point PAT when he plunged into the end zone with seven seconds left on the clock for the win. It was Ferrum's fourth two-point conversion of the game.

Washington U. battled from a 21-point first quarter deficit for a 41-34 overtime victory at Carnegie Mellon. J.J. Tomlin led the Bears on a 13-play drive, including a two-point conversion pass to Matt Page with 12 seconds left to send the game into overtime. Page caught a 29-yard TD pass in overtime to give the Bears the lead and Jake Coon stopped All-American Sam Benger on fourth-and-2 from the 3-yard line to end the game.

After a back-and-forth affair that found Alfred and Husson deadlocked at 21-21 after three quarters, Alfred scored 14 unanswered points to open the fourth and go up 35-21. Husson wouldn't go away, scoring with just over three minutes left to draw within a touchdown. The Eagles had one more chance, but after taking over at their own 15 with 1:31 left, turned the ball over on downs.

Rowan scored 16 unanswered points in the second half to defeat Widener 19-14, marking the second season in a row the Profs have rallied to quell the Pride. Rowan trimmed the deficit to 14-10 with 7:05 left in the third when quarterback Dante Pinckney hit receiver Kevin Lenart for a 61-yard touchdown. The drive was set up by the second interception of the day by defensive back Shaquille Lee. On the first play of the fourth quarter, wideout Zac Frantz caught a 21-yard touchdown pass, capping a five-play 62-yard drive. The Profs added three more points with 3:36 remaining when Tyler Knighton converted a 32-yard field goal. Travelle Curry sealed the game, intercepting a pass with 29 seconds remaining.

Elmhurst rallied with 19 points in the fourth quarter and the one extra point the Bluejays converted in that stretch was enough to lift Elmhurst to a 28-27 win vs. Loras. Elmhurst picked off Loras quarterbacks four times. ... Dale Stewart scored his fourth touchdown of the game with 34 seconds remaining to lift Buffalo State to a 29-26 victory over visiting Otterbein. ... St. Vincent won its season opener for the first time since the program returned in 2007, as the Bearcats defeated Alma 47-24. ... UW-Stevens Point did not allow a single St. Norbert player to finish with positive rushing yards and the Green Knights managed just 177 yards of total offense in a 37-14 loss.