Box Score
In a battle of nationally-ranked teams, No. 8 Minnesota Duluth handed 25th-ranked Augustana its first loss of the season, defeating the Vikings 42-21 Saturday night in Duluth, Minn.
Both teams are now 3-1 overall on the season. However, UMD is 3-0 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, while Augustana slipped to 2-1 in league play after having its five-game winning streak snapped.
Augustana traded scores with the Bulldogs for much of the first half. But the Bulldogs, the defending Division II national champions, capitalized on a pair of short fields to gain the upper hand in the game.
With the score tied 14-14, UMD's Brandon Wood intercepted a
Josh Hanson pass and returned it to the Augustana 30 with 2 minutes to play in the first half. Four plays later, Chase Vogler found D.J. Winfield for a 13-yard scoring pass to help give the Bulldogs a 21-14 lead with 1:03 left in the half.
Augustana took the second half kickoff, but the Vikings were pinned deep in their own territory. With the Vikings forced to punt, UMD took over at the Augie 43. The Bulldogs then marched 43 yards in 7 plays, capped by a 3-yard run by Isaac Odim, who rushed for 126 yards and 4 touchdowns. That put UMD ahead 28-14 with 10:32 left in the third quarter.
The Vikings cut the lead in half later in the quarter.
Zac Kallas blocked a Bulldog punt and
Mike Vanasek recovered the ball in the end zone with 6:52 on the clock to make the score 28-21.
But Minnesota Duluth answered quickly on its next drive. Vogler hooked up with Josh Quilling for a 69-yard gain to the Augustana 2 to set up Odim's 2-yard score with 5:50 left in the quarter to push the Bulldog lead to 35-21.
Minnesota Duluth added another touchdown on its next possession to account for the scoring.
The game began with the teams trading scoring drives. UMD struck first on its opening drive with a 13-yard touchdown run by Odim that was set up by a 54-yard pass from Vogler to Noah Pauley.
Augustana used a big play of its own for its first touchdown.
Luke Butler connected with
Tyler Schulte for an 89-yard touchdown with 7:10 left in the quart to knot the score 7-7.
UMD countered with a 69-yard scoring drive that ended with a 1-yard plunge by Odim with 42 seconds left in the period.
The Vikings tied the score again the next time they touched the ball. Augustana drove 71 yards on 7 plays. After
Joe Clark and
Nate Mahone had big gains running the ball, Butler found
Sam Holsen for a 24-yard touchdown pass to make the score 14-14 with 13:00 left in the second quarter.
Butler paced the Viking offense by completing 22 of 34 passes for 296 yards and 2 touchdowns. He now has 11 touchdowns on the season, 1 more than he did all of last season. Schulte was his big target, catching 5 passes for 140 yards and a score.
The Vikings were unable to sustain their ground game, as they were held to 34 yards. Mahone had a team-high 24 yards, while Clark had 20.
Vogler was 11 of 18 for 217 yards and 1 touchdown for UMD.
Defensively,
Josh Niedenfuer and
Chris Janisch shared team-high honors with 8 tackles apiece.
Augustana returns home next Saturday to entertain Concordia University, St. Paul in a 1 p.m. contest at Kirkeby-Over Stadium.
