BOX SCORE

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Concordia-St. Paul running back Tre Spears rushed for 206 yards and two touchdowns as the Golden Bears (4-6, 3-3 NSIC South) held off the Vikings for a 17-7 victory on Saturday at Sea Foam Stadium. Augustana (5-5, 2-4 NSIC South) rushed for 149 yards in the first quarter but finished the game with just 154 and was held off the scoreboard until late in the fourth quarter.
 
Augustana held the Golden Bears to just 63 passing yards but CU rushed for 332, led by Spears' 206, while Darius Chapes rushed nine times for 68 yards. The Vikings finished the game with 373 yards of total offense, including 219 passing yards, but threw three interceptions.
 
CJ Ham led the Vikings on the ground with 94 rushing yards while Dajon Newell picked up 51. Trey Heid was 11 of 26 passing for 108 yards and two interceptions. Chase Marso threw the Vikings touchdown pass in the fourth quarter finishing 4 of 7 for 111 yards. Ben Skelly led the Vikings defensively with 15 tackles and a fumble recovery. Trevor Naasz added a career-high 10 tackles on the day.  
 
After a scoreless first quarter, the Golden Bears opened the scoring with a 15-yard touchdown run by Spears to take a 7-0 lead with 10:27 remaining in the half. The Vikings moved the ball into Concordia territory twice in the second quarter but came up empty and trailed by just one score heading into the second half after Tom Obarski missed a 43-yard field goal.
 
The score remained the same heading into the fourth quarter but Obarski got another shot, this time for 34 yards and connected to give the Golden Bears a 10-0 lead with 12:09 to play.
 
Justin Greenway set the Vikings up with great field position on their next drive after a 36-yard kick return. Marso then led the Vikings on a six-play 64-yard scoring drive ending with a 14-yard touchdown pass to Matt Gerry to bring the Vikings within one score at 10-7.
 
The Viking defense made the Golden Bears earn it on their next drive as CU converted on fourth down at the Augustana 27 yard line and eventually scored on a 14-yard run by Spears. The score pushed CU's lead back to two scores at 17-7 with 4:25 remaining in the game.
 
Augustana quickly got within scoring distance on its next drive after a 43-yard completion from Marso to Heller set the Vikings up first and goal from the seven yard line. Marso then looked to have completed a pass to Gerry but CU's Jordan Nieuwsma wrestled the ball out of Gerry's arms for the interception.
 
Augustana continued to make things tough on Concordia as they blocked a punt with 1:58 remaining in the game on the Golden Bears' next drive and took over at their seven yard line. Marso was dropped for a loss of eight yards on a sack and the Vikings would end up attempting a 29-yard field goal with 58 seconds left but missed wide left and the Golden Bears were able to kneel and hold on for the victory.
 
Augustana will conclude the 2014 season next Saturday, Nov. 15 at Southwest Minnesota State. Kickoff from the Regional Event Center in Marshall, Minn. is set for 1 p.m.