#15 Minnesota Duluth built a 17-7 first half lead, then made key defensive stops in the second half to defeat Wayne State 20-13 Saturday afternoon in Northern Sun Conference football played at Bob Cunningham Field in Wayne for the annual Hall of Fame Game. WSC slips to 2-1 and 1-1 in the league while UMD is 2-1 and 2-0 in the NSIC.
The Bulldogs scored on the opening possession of the contest as Alex Riley rambled for a 25-yard touchdown run giving UMD a 7-0 lead.
Wayne State answered later in the quarter when junior quarterback
Brady McGill connected with wide receiver
Keaten Bonderson on a 46-yard pass play to even the score at 7-7 with 5:52 to play in the first quarter.
Following a missed WSC field goal early in the second quarter, Minnesota Duluth marched 76 yards on seven plays and took the lead for good at 14-7 on a 21-yard pass from Jacob Eggert to Catcher Langeness with 9:47 to play in the second quarter.
The Bulldogs added a 36-yard field goal from Drew Henson with 33 seconds to play in the half giving Minnesota Duluth a 17-7 cushion at halftime. UMD held a 229-102 edge in total offense through the first half.
UMD scored on their first possession of the third quarter after forcing a three-and-out on WSC to open the second half. The Bulldogs moved 45 yards on eight plays and used a Henson field goal of 33 yards to increase their lead to 20-7 with 8:01 to play in the third quarter.
Minnesota Duluth gained just 13 yards the rest of the game, but relied on their defense to make key stops as Wayne State held a 219-58 edge of total offense in the second half.
The Wildcats put together their first scoring opportunity early in the fourth quarter, driving 64 yards on 11 plays before the drive stalled on downs at the UMD 14.
Wayne State scored in the final minute as senior tight end
Dane Petersen snagged an eight-yard strike from McGill with 34 seconds to play, cutting the Bulldog lead to 20-13.
UMD recovered the onside kick to preserve the 20-13 win.
WSC held a 321-287 advantage in total offense over the Bulldogs. WSC had 104 yards rushing and 217 passing while UMD gained 114 on the ground and another 173 through the air.
Dawson Forgy rushed for 84 yards on 19 carries to lead WSC.
Throwing the ball, McGill was 19 of 36 for 217 yards and two touchdowns. Bonderson was the top receiver with five catches for 97 yards and one TD while Petersen added three grabs for 22 yards and one score.
Defensively senior linebacker
Clyde Hinton had 12 tackles with one sack while
Dayne Mauk added seven stops.
The Wildcats will be at home again next Saturday hosting the University of Jamestown in the Family Day Game at Cunningham Field with kickoff slated for 6 p.m.
