Bemidji State 21 #14 Wayne State 10
Bemidji State used a dominant ball control offense, controlling the ball for 44:06 while running 85 plays to Wayne State's 45 plays as the Beavers downed #14 Wayne State 21-10 in Northern Sun Conference football played in snowy and cold Bemidji, Minnesota. Both teams are now 5-2 overall and 4-2 in the NSIC following Saturday's game.
Two Wayne State players became all-time Northern Sun Conference leaders in the loss as senior wide receiver Logan Masters had five catches for 69 yards to become the all-time NSIC receptions leader while senior quarterback Silas Fluellen had 150 yards passing to become the NSIC's all-time leader in passing yards.
Wayne State opened the scoring early in the second quarter as Nick Hope booted a 34-yard field goal to cap an 11-play, 58 yard drive, giving the Wildcats a 3-0 lead with 14:46 to play in the first half. Bemidji State then responded with a drive that took 8:29, covering 63 yards on 14 plays, as quarterback Derek Edholm hit tight end Brian Leonhardt on a 22-yard scoring play to put the Beavers in front 7-3 at halftime.
The Wildcats regained the lead midway through the third quarter when Silas Fluellen scored on a seven-yard run to conclude a seven-play, 62 yard drive that gave WSC a 10-7 lead with 6:44 remaining in the third quarter. But Bemidji State put together a pair of scoring drives late third quarter into the fourth quarter that used a majority of the clock as the Beavers knocked off their second nationally ranked opponent on the season for the win. Bemidji State's Dustin Kroeplin scored on a three-yard run with 13:59 to play in the game, capping a 17-play, 79 yard drive for the Beavers that gave BSU a 14-10 lead. On the next drive, WSC moved the ball to their own 44 yard line, but on fourth and one, Fluellen was stopped on a quarterback sneak and BSU took over on downs. The Beavers then clinched the win by driving 59 yards on 10 plays, capped by a 23-yard touchdown pass from Edholm to Jody Henningson, giving Bemidji State a 21-10 lead with 2:15 in the game and that closed out the scoring.
Bemidji State gained 324 yards of total offense to just 206 for Wayne State, a season low. The Beavers dominated the time of possession, 44:06 to 15:54 for WSC, and ran 85 plays to just 45 for the Wildcats.
For Wayne State, Silas Fluellen completed 12 of 26 passes for 150 yards. With his 150 yards passing, Fluellen became the all-time leader in NSIC games in passing yardage, pushing his career total to 7,759 yards to surpass the previous NSIC mark of 7,736 yards set by Josh Shudlick of Southwest Minnesota State from 2005-08.
Logan Masters was the top receiver with five catches for 69 yards followed by Frederick Bruno with four receptions for 43 yards. Masters now has 188 catches in NSIC games, surpassing the previous mark of 185 receptions held by Damien Hoffman of Minnesota Morris from 1997-2000. It also marks the 42nd consecutive game that Masters has recorded at least two receptions in a game. He is two games shy of tying the NCAA Division II record for most consecutive games played with a catch that is held by Morningside's Mitch Allner from 1996-99.
The top rusher for WSC was Fluellen with 31 yards on 10 carries. Defensively, sophomore defensive lineman Michael Bazata of Howells was credited with 18 tackles while redshirt freshman defensive lineman Jeff Pokorny, also of Howells, made 16 stops.
For Bemidji State, redshirt freshman running back Dustin Kroeplin finished the game with 100 yards rushing on 28 carries followed by Lance Rongstad with 53 yards on 16 attempts. Quarterback Derek Edholm completed 8 of 15 passes for 116 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.
Wayne State will be on the road again next weekend, visiting Winona State Saturday afternoon for a 1:00 p.m. Northern Sun Conference contest.
