Faccio scores three times as Sentinels hold off Alpena

ALPENA, Mich. — Alpena kept answering Marquette on Friday night. Marquette had the last answer.

Landen Faccio ran for three touchdowns, the last from the 3 with 58 seconds left, and Marquette beat the Wildcats 34-21 in Alpena for its fourth straight win.

Alpena tied the game at 7 on a 78-yard run by quarterback Cash Moughon and at 14 on his 7-yard pass to Brody Misiak. After Marquette went up 26-14, running back Szymoniak scored from the 11 on the first play of the fourth quarter to make it 26-21.

Marquette’s final drive covered 64 yards and survived fourth-and-10 from the Alpena 24, where Winston Leonard found Brody Clements for 19 yards. Faccio scored on the next play, and Leonard threw to Faccio for the two-point conversion. Coltyn Plantenga intercepted Moughon on Alpena’s next possession.

Faccio ran 23 times for 115 yards. Leonard completed 17 of 21 passes for 211 yards and touchdowns of 16 yards to Clements and 23 to Skyler Blackburn, who caught six passes for 87 yards. Marquette did not turn the ball over.

Moughon ran for 107 yards and threw for 130 for Alpena (1-5), which has lost five straight.

“We kept responding,” Marquette coach Eric Mason said. “Our kids fought hard, and at the end of the day, found a way to win and got it done.”

Marquette (4-2, 4-0 Big North Conference) hosts Gaylord at 7 p.m. Friday.