SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Augustana University football held Southwest Minnesota State scoreless in the second half and forced three turnovers in the game to improve to 4-1 (1-0 NSIC South) with a 48-23 victory over the Mustangs (4-1, 0-1 NSIC South) on Saturday afternoon at Kirkeby-Over Stadium.
 
The Vikings finished the contest with a season-high 536 yards of total offense behind a career-high 160 rushing yards from senior CJ Ham. Ham carried the ball 19 times for 160 yards and a score, while picking up a career-long 61-yard run in the contest. The 100-plus yard effort by Ham marks the fifth career 100-yard rushing game for the senior.
 
Ham's touchdown was the seventh of the season, matching his career-high for touchdowns in a season. He also went over 2,000 career rushing yards in the game and now sits at 2,094 career yards.  
 
Augustana rushed for a season-high 246 yards as a team this afternoon, with Justin Greenway adding 86 yards on the ground on seven carries. Greenway rushed for his fourth touchdown of the season and busted-off a 54-yard carry early in the fourth quarter.
 
Junior quarterback Trey Heid finished the game 15 of 20 passing for 290 yards and three touchdowns while rushing for his first score of the season. Heid hit seven different receivers in the game and tossed for over 200 yards for the fourth time this season. He has thrown three or more touchdowns in three games this season, nine times in his career.
 
Augustana had four receivers with 50-plus receiving yards on the day, led by Charlie Hayes who caught six passes for 70 yards and a score. Jake Bartscher caught three passes for a career-high 89 yards, including a career-long reception of 51 yards while Matt Heller hauled in two passes for 54 yards and two touchdowns.
 
The Vikings had a big day defensively, forcing three turnovers and recording four sacks and seven tackles for loss. Jamal Samaha led the defensive attack on the line matching his career-high with five tackles and setting a career-high with three sacks.


 
Brandon Mohr led Augustans with 14 tackles, including four solo, while Trevor Naasz pitched in with a career-high 11 tackles. Zach Richter and Jason Greenway each had a fumble recovery while Jordan Johnson picked up his third-career interception and returned it 51 yards for a score.
 
The Mustangs got on the board first scoring on a halfback pass by Davontay Stevens that found Nate Huot in the end zone for a 37-yard touchdown and an early 7-0 lead for the visiting team. Augustana drove the length of the field on its first drive of the game after Bartscher got the Vikings into Mustang territory with a career-long 51-yard reception. Augustana would settle for a 29-yard Lucas Wainman field goal on the drive to make the score 7-3 with less than four minutes gone in the first quarter.
 
SMSU answered with a 26-yard field goal by Austin Wells that made the score 10-3 with 6:45 remaining in the first quarter and the Vikings would kick their second field goal of the game on their next drive to make it 10-6 after a 45-yard connection by Wainman.
 
The Viking defense would force SMSU to punt on the last play of the first quarter and the Vikings opened the second quarter with a six-play 84-yard drive that ended with a 10-yard touchdown pass from Heid to Hayes to give Augustana its first lead of the game at 13-10.
 
Five plays into SMSU's next drive with the ball near midfield, Johnson stepped in front of a Blake Gimbel pass and returned it 56 yards to the SMSU eight-yard line setting up a Viking score. Two plays later, Ham plunged into the end zone for his seventh touchdown of the season giving Augustana a 20-10 lead after the extra-point attempt.
 
A big play led to a touchdown on SMSU's next drive when Gimbel found Huot for a 70-yard touchdown strike that cut Augustana's lead to 20-16.
 
Augustana would punt for the first time in the game on its next possession and SMSU answered on the ensuing drive going 54 yards on eight plays and getting into the end zone on a three-yard run by Ashanti Payne that gave SMSU its second lead of the game at 23-20. Augustana's only other punt in the game came on its next possession but the Mustangs would not end up with the ball. Justin Greenway flew down the field and put a big hit on the SMSU returner jarring the ball loose for brother Jason Greenway to fall on and set up the Vikings with another short field.
 
Heid would plunge into the end zone three plays later for his first rushing touchdown of the season putting Augustana back in front, now 27-23. That is where the score would stay headed into the locker room as the big special teams play sent the Vikings into halftime with a lot of momentum.
 
The Vikings started with the ball in the second half but turned it over just three plays into the half but the defense would hold and force SMSU to punt. Three plays later, Heid hit Heller with a deep ball over the middle that would go 44-yards for a touchdown and the Vikings would not look back out-scoring SMSU 21-0 in the second half leading to a 48-23 victory.
 
Augustana will go on the road next Saturday to take on No. 1 Minnesota State. The Vikings and Mavericks will get underway with a 2 p.m. kickoff at Blakeslee Stadium in Mankato, Minn.