Box Score (.pdf)
Northern State gave third-ranked Minnesota Duluth all they could handle Saturday afternoon but in the end, the Bulldogs came out on top with a 43-30 victory over the Wolves at Malosky Stadium. UMD scored 14 points off of four Northern turnovers and it proved to be the difference in the contest.
The loss drops NSU to 4-3 overall and 2-1 in the North Division. It also snaps the Wolves' three-game winning streak and three-game road win streak to start the season.
The Bulldogs, who came into the game as the top rushing team in the NSIC and one of the top rush defenses in the conference, held the Wolves to just 52 yards rushing in the game and ran for 385 yards of their own. However, Northern's passing game was clicking all afternoon as
Jared Jacobson passed for 408 yards and three touchdowns in the loss. The 408 yards passing are the second-most of Jacobson's career. Jacobson went 29-for-49 in the game and was picked-off twice.
Three Northern receivers went over 100 yards receiving in the game as
Jared Hannigan caught 11 passes for 152 yards to lead the team.
Zachery Barber and
Cody Kraft each caught six balls for 111 and 105 yards, respectively and both had a receiving touchdown.
Nicholas Truen had four catches and a score in the loss.
Both teams got off to hot starts to begin the game. Duluth got on the board first with a 47-yard touchdown run from Drew Bauer but NSU answered right back with Barber's 19-yard touchdown catch. After another UMD score, Kraft caught his 19-yard score and things were all tied again at 14-14.
The Bulldogs looked to be in control late in the second quarter when they took a 34-17 lead, but the Wolves responded with just 33 seconds left in the opening half on Truen's touchdown catch and the Wolves trailed just 34-24 heading into halftime.
The Duluth defense put the clamps on in the second half and stretched its lead to 43-24 with 11:45 left to play in the game. Northern's final score came on a Jacobson two-yard run to make it 43-30 with 6:34 left in the fourth quarter.
Jacobson led the Wolves with 30 yards rushing while Truen, who was seventh in the league in rushing coming into the game, was held to just 21 yards on the ground. Logan Lauters rushed for 200 yards in the win for UMD.
Defensively, NSU was led by
Joe Parsley who had a team-high nine tackles.
Zach Neer had seven stops while
Tanner Lopez had six tackles and half a sack.
Ryan Weybrecht recorded a sack-and-a-half in the contest.
Northern returns home next weekend for the first time in three weeks as it hosts St. Cloud State at 1 p.m. from Swisher Field. Next Saturday will be Military Appreciation Day at NSU.
