CROOKSTON, Minn. - The University of Minnesota Crookston football team fell 41-7 Sat., Oct. 10 in their Homecoming football game against Bemidji State University. The Beavers hang on to the Hub Cap with the win, as they improved to 3-3 on the season. The Golden Eagles fall to 0-6 on the season.
The outlook for the Golden Eagles wasn't good from the first play as Mario Stephens from BSU stole the ball right out of the hands of
Dre Person (Jr., RB, Detroit, Mich.). The Beavers would quickly go in as Tahi Nomane went on from 19-yards out to make it 7-0.
Bemidji State would score later in the first quarter when Jordan Hein found Vince Dinkel from 10 yards out to make it 14-0.
After another quick UMC offensive drive, the Beavers would get the ball and go in for their third score of the quarter when Gena Adams ran it in from six yards out to make it 21-0.
The Golden Eagles would have just 16 yards of offense in the first quarter.
The Beavers would add to their lead on their first drive of the second quarter when Hein found Christian Lunde from seven yards out. A missed Aanerud point-after would make it 27-0.
A Kaleb Olszewski punt return of 52 yards would set up the Beavers in great field position at the 23. Hein would run in from 23-yards out to extend the lead to 34-0.
The Golden Eagles would look to set themselves up well late in the second quarter as
Dion Wallisch (R-Fr., DB, Oakdale, Minn.) forced a fumble recovered by
Aeric Berner (Fr., DB, Aniwa, Wis.) at the UMC 38. The Golden Eagles wold move the football and would-have two would-be touchdown passes to
Ryan Hutton (Jr., WR, Thief River Falls, Minn.) called back due to penalties. The Golden Eagles would be unable to do anything more as penalties would continue to set them back before the half ended.
UMC would look to get things going early in the half when
Mike Maw (Jr., K, White Bear Lake, Minn.)
executed an on-side kick, which he recovered to give the Golden Eagles the ball to start out the half. However, UMC was unable to do much with the football, something that has plagued the offense much of the season.
The Golden Eagles would force a turnover on BSU's first drive of the second half as
Bubba Cook (Fr., DL, Surprise, Ariz.) forced a fumble recovered by
Jake Newman (So., DB, White Bear Lake, Minn.) at the UMC 26. However, UMC would go three-and-out, giving the ball back to the Beavers.
BSU looked to be going into the end zone on the next drive but
Brody Davidson (Sr., LB, Crookston, Minn.) would force the fumble on the goal line. UMC would give the ball right back as
Nathan Cole (R-So., QB, Aliso Viejo, Calif.) threw an interception to Damon Benham, who returned it 16 yards to pay dirt.
The Golden Eagles would get on the board early in the fourth quarter as Cole connected with
Constant Jackson (Sr., WR, Jacksonville, Fla.) from 15 yards out to make the score 41-14. That would end up being the final.
Minnesota Crookston finished the game with 229 yard, including 186 yards through the air. The Golden Eagles were led by Cole, who came off the bench and went 14-of-23 for 149 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Adam Connette (So., WR, Corona, Calif.) had 11 catches for 100 yards. Connette now has 912 yards in just a-year-and-a-half at UMC, ranking fifth all-time. He needs just 18 yards to move past Aaron Wall in fourth place. Harold Halcomb (Jr., RB, Oakland, Calif.) led the running attack with 12 carries for 40 yards. Jackson had five receptions for 46 yards.
The UMC defense forced three turnovers and was led by Wallisch with six tackles and one forced fumble, and Davidson, who had six tackles with one forced fumble.
Jake Christopherson (So., DL, Sturgeon Lake, Minn.) had four tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss, while
Austin Howard (Jr., DL, New Albany, Miss.O had three tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss.
BSU had 285 yards rushing and 394 yards of offense. The Beavers were led by Adams, who had 13 carries for 155 yards and a touchdown. Nomane added 13 carries for 66 yards and a touchdown, while Hein had 10 carries for 62 yards and a touchdown. Hein was 10-of-20 for 109 yards with two touchdown passes. Dinkel was his top target with two catches for 24 yards and a touchdown.
The BSU defense was led by Anthony Valentine, who had seven tackles with one sack and one forced fumble. Jamison Evans tallied seven tackles with one tackle for loss. Benham had six tackles with 1.5 tackles for loss and an interception.
The Golden Eagles will return to action as they take on Northern State University Sat., Oct. 17 at 1 p.m. at Ed Widseth Field.
For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at
www.goldeneaglesports.com.
Follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook at Golden Eagle Sports and on Twitter at @UMCAthletics.
The University of Minnesota Crookston is a NCAA Division II university located in the Red River Valley of Northwest Minnesota. UMC sponsors 11 intercollegiate athletic teams with membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate conference (NSIC) and the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA). The NSIC is a 16-team conference with schools situated in Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska.
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