Wayne State 48 Southwest Minnesota State 45 OT

            Junior running back Ryan Ludlow scored on a 10-yard run in overtime to help Wayne State College win a 48-45 overtime thriller at Southwest Minnesota State Saturday evening in Northern Sun Conference football played at the Schwan Regional Event Center in Marshall, Minnesota.  With the win, the Wildcats move to 5-3 overall and 3-1 in the NSIC South Division while the host Mustangs drop to 2-6 on the season and 1-3 in divisional play.
            SMSU scored on the opening drive of the game on a Tyler Tonderum two-yard run for an early 7-0 lead.  WSC answered on their first series of the game as the 'Cats needed just four plays and 47 yards to even the score at 7-7 following a nine yard touchdown pass from Zach Osborn to Cole McDaniel with 9:17 remaining in the first quarter.
            The Wildcats scored on back-to-back possessions in the second quarter to grab a 21-7 lead.  The first score was on a Lane Yates four-yard run that capped an 11-play, 60 yard drive to give the Wildcats a 14-7 lead.  WSC then used a big pass play, 74 yards from Osborn to senior wide receiver Adam Stark, to score again for a 21-7 lead with 10:55 to go in the second quarter.
            But after punting on three straight possessions, the SMSU offense caught fire at the end of the first half and scored twice to even the score at 21-21 at halftime. The first score was a seven yard pass from Charlie Kern to Nathaniel Huot at the 6:30 mark followed by a 35-yard scoring strike from Kern to Tonderum with just 1:19 left before halftime.
            SMSU opened the scoring in the third quarter on a four yard pass from Kern to Nate Carr for a 28-21 Mustang lead with 7:36 to play in the third quarter. Wayne State responded on the ensuing series as the 'Cats marched 74 yards on eight plays capped by a 20-yard pass from Osborn to Brian Kent, but WSC missed the extra point as SMSU held a 28-27 lead with 4:52 to go in the third quarter.
            The Wildcat defense came up big on the next series as junior outside linebacker Zach Bierman intercepted a Charlie Kern pass and raced 53 yards for a score to give WSC the lead at 35-28 following a two point pass to Nick Roth.
            SMSU tied the score on the next drive thanks to a Kern to Huot 13-yard scoring strike with 9:10 to play.
            Late in the fourth quarter, Wayne State drove down the field and scored on a two-yard run by senior fullback Chad Koch to put the Wildcats in front 42-35 with 1:41 remaining. But SMSU drove 68 yards on 11 plays and scored on the final play of regulation, a 10-yard pass from Kern to Jordan Cross, to even the score at 42-42 and force overtime.
            SMSU had the ball first in the extra session and WSC held the Mustangs to a 29-yard field goal by Mike Wenk for a 45-42 SMSU lead.  WSC needed just two plays in overtime to score as Osborn connected with Kent on a 15-yard pass to put the ball at the SMSU 10, then junior running back Ryan Ludlow found the end zone on a 10-yard jaunt to end the game as Wayne State outlasted the Mustangs 48-45.
            SMSU held a 521-461 advantage in total offense over Wayne State, marking the first time this season that WSC has been outgained in a game.  The Wildcats had 125 yards rushing and 336 passing while SMSU gained 233 on the ground and 306 through the air.
            Wayne State's top rusher was Ryan Ludlow with 74 yards on 10 carries and one touchdown followed by true freshman Lane Yates with 51 yards on 10 rushes with one score. 
            Sophomore quarterback Zach Osborn completed 23 of 38 passes for 336 yards with three touchdowns and one interception.  It marked the fourth straight 300-yard passing contest for the Harlan, Iowa native. 
            Junior Brian Kent had a career-high 115 yards receiving on eight catches and one score followed by senior Cole McDaniel with eight receptions and 112 yards with one score.  McDaniel has had at least seven catches in seven of eight games this season and recorded his fifth 100-yard receiving game of the season.
            Defensively, junior linebacker Nathan Scott and senior linebacker Nick Monzu each were credited with 15 tackles for the Wildcats.  Junior linebacker Nate Kroupa added 13 tackles followed by Jon Davis with 12 and J'Ron Erby 10 to go with three pass breakups.  Junior linebacker Zach Bierman had a 53-yard interception return for a touchdown.
            The Wildcats will be on the road again next Saturday, visiting Upper Iowa in a NSIC South Division matchup starting at 6 p.m. in Fayette, Iowa.