SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Augustana defeated Sioux Falls, 37-20, on Saturday at Kirkeby-Over Stadium. This win marked the Vikings' fourth in a row over their rivals, the Cougars, earning them the Key to the City. AU scored 20 unanswered points across four scoring drives from late in the third quarter into the fourth quarter, moving from a 20-17 deficit to the final margin. Augustana went 6-for-6 in the red zone, rushed for 182 yards and three touchdowns, and held possession for 35:45.
Gunnar Hensley completed 22 of 37 passes for 280 yards and one touchdown and added 25 rushing yards and a score.
Breylon Blount rushed 23 times for 127 yards and one touchdown and added two catches for 10 yards.
Cody Oswald caught three passes for 88 yards and a touchdown.
Camron Maciejewski led the Vikings with 13 tackles.
Augustana took the opening possession 75 yards in 11 plays, converting third downs with Hensley completions to
Klayton Sattler and
DJ Page before
Max Carlson finished the drive with a 2-yard touchdown at 10:05 and
Jake Pecina's kick made it 7-0. USF answered from its 45, and after
Kael Ryan and Maciejewski stopped Bennett Brueck for a 1-yard loss on third down, Brueck found Hank Brown Jr. for an 18-yard touchdown on fourth-and-2 before JT Frieders' extra point tied it at 7-7. The Vikings moved back in front on the next drive, with Hensley hitting Sattler for 23 yards on third-and-11 and Oswald for 25 yards before Pecina made a 28-yard field goal for a 10-7 lead at 2:55. The Cougars reached midfield on their final possession, but Maciejewski and
Brock Salm held Bubba Tann III to no gain on third-and-2 as the first quarter ended with Augustana ahead 10-7.
Augustana's first drive of the second quarter stalled after a holding penalty wiped out a 33-yard completion, and USF later reached the AU49 before Ryan broke up a second-down throw and two more incompletions forced a punt. Starting at its own 20 with 8:20 left, Augustana went 80 yards in 11 plays, with Blount runs helping start the drive and Hensley completing passes to Sattler,
Isaiah Lemmond and Blount before Hensley scored on a 9-yard run at 3:31; Pecina's kick made it 17-7. The Cougars answered with a 79-yard drive capped by Bennett Brueck's 46-yard touchdown pass to Adonis Hutchinson at 1:02, cutting the score to 17-14 after the extra point. After AU lost a fumble at its own 27, USF needed two plays to score on Brueck's 13-yard pass to Hank Brown Jr. at 0:21, and the second quarter ended with the Cougars ahead 20-17 after the missed kick.
USF opened the third quarter by crossing midfield, but
Jermaine Hampton Jr. broke up a third-down pass with
Joshua Lee-O'Bryant pressuring the quarterback, forcing a punt to the Augustana 15. Augustana followed with a 13-play, 85-yard drive that included two first-down passes from Hensley and two Cougars penalties before Blount scored on an 8-yard run at 5:14, and Pecina's kick put the Vikings ahead 24-20. After USF went three-and-out, Hensley hit Page twice to move the ball into Cougars territory and then found Oswald for a 39-yard touchdown at 2:59 to make it 31-20 after Pecina's extra point.
Damarrius Hammonds forced a fumble on the ensuing kickoff return and Pecina recovered at the USF 37, setting up another Augustana drive that reached the 2-yard line before the third quarter ended with the Vikings leading 31-20.
Augustana opened the fourth quarter with Pecina's 20-yard field goal at 14:16 to make it 34-20, and the defense answered the Cougars' push to the Augustana 30 when
Tyler Birn's 10-yard sack forced a punt. After an exchange of punts,
Jack Detert added another sack and
Steel Schomaker broke up a third-down pass to stop the next USF drive before the Vikings put together an 11-play, 67-yard march that included first-down gains by Hensley,
Max Carlson, Lemmond, and Blount. Pecina finished that drive with a 33-yard field goal at 2:15 for a 37-20 lead, and Augustana closed it out when
Christian Connelly's sack helped set up a fourth-down stop at the USF 37 before Hensley kneeled out the final 37-20 win.
Up Next
AU heads back on the road to St. Paul, Minn., to face Concordia-St. Paul on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 12 p.m.
– GoAugie.com –
