Valparaiso Beacons, Ind. (AP) Grif Wurtz returned a fumble 79 yards for a touchdown and Owen Kanzler went 89 yards for a kickoff-return score and St. Thomas pulled away from Valparaiso 34-7 on Saturday for its eighth-straight win.

The Tommies (8-1, 6-0 Pioneer Football League) had three touchdown plays of at least 50 yards.

Wurtz opened the scoring with his big play and Cade Sexauer produced the next two scores, a 9-yard run that made it 14-0 at halftime and a 50-yard scoring pass to Andrew McElroy early in the third quarter.

Aaron Dawson's 1-yard plunge put the Beacons (4-5, 3-3) on the scoreboard midway through the third quarter to get within 20-7, but it was quickly answered when Kanzler, a true freshman touching the ball for just the sixth time in his career, took the kickoff up the middle to midfield before finding the end zone down the right sideline.

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