WAYNE, Neb. – Minot State University built a 20-7 lead and then held off Wayne State College late to grab a 20-14 win in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference football Saturday night at Memorial Stadium / Bob Cunningham Field.

"This was a credit to the kids, they kept playing. The situation might be getting tighter, but you can't play that way," said MSU head coach Tyler Hughes.

Senior Jarvis Mustipher scored from a 4 yards out on the Beavers first drive of the third quarter to give MSU the 13-point cushion.

From there, it was in the hands of the defense that bent at times, but didn't break, culminating in an interception by Donnell Vercher in his own end zone to finish off one final WSC drive.

"Our defensive backs made some big plays down the stretch," Hughes said. "Mike Jenkins had a nice pass breakup on their final drive, Obinna (Obinna Nwachukwu) made an unbelievably athletic play on their guy around the end zone on the second-to-last play and then Donnell sealed the deal."

Minot State (1-1 overall, 1-1 NSIC) jumped out to an early 7-0 lead as starting quarterback Zac Cunha found Akkil Walker over the middle for a 21-yard strike one play after the Beavers forced a fumble on WSC's opening drive.

Wayne State got back into the game with a turnover and a short drive of its own in the second quarter with Nate Rogers hauling in an 8-yard pass from Zach Osborn to make it 7-7.

MSU responded with a huge drive to close out the second quarter. Backup quarter Isaiah Weed found Ray Watkins in the back of the end zone for a 24 yard TD to make it 14-7 at half. The drive covered 72 yards on 13 plays and ate up 7:09 on the clock.

Weed played the last few plays of the drive after Cunha was injured on a scramble play. Weed hit Watkins for the TD on his first pass of the game and set up the eventual game-winner with a long pass to Walker on the first drive of the second half.

"We needed Isaiah to make a play early on after Zac went down because the sideline was really disappointed seeing that happen," Hughes said. "He needed to get us back on track right away and he did that with some big plays right away. He made it (playing without the Beavers starter) a little more manageable.

"He's been here before, starting last year as a true freshman, he's been in this position before. We will continue to rely on him as we go forward."

Weed finished with 161 yards passing and used his running ability to gain 4 more yards on the ground,  avoided multiple would-be sacks in the second half. He was 12 of 15 overall passing as MSU's two signal callers combined to go 22 for 29 for 268 yards and two TDs.

The Wildcats (0-2, 0-2) got to within a score with long drive of their own midway through the third quarter as Rogers snagged another pass from Osborn.

But the Beavers defense held from there.

MSU gave up just 34 yards and one first down until the Wildcats' final desperation drive. In all, Minot State gave up just 165 yards in the second half and held WSC to just 55 yards in the fourth quarter.

The Beavers had a chance to salt the game away moments before the WSC final drive but Minot State turned the ball over on downs. MSU had a great 12-play drive going that chewed up 6:59 of the fourth quarter and appeared to have a first down with just 1:22 to play, but a measurement said otherwise, turning the ball over and adding to the drama.

"I really thought we had it, but we didn't and had to deal with it," Hughes said. "All of a sudden we were playing defense again. They got a big completion on a third down and called time out and we were like, 'here we go, it's finishing time.' We would figure out what we are made of."

The Beavers were outgained on the ground 167-96, but held WSC to just 116 yards passing on 13 completions and finished with a 364-283 advantage in total offense. MSU won the turnover battle for the second game in a row, finishing with a fumble recovery and an interception.

Mustipher led the Beavers on the ground with 72 yards rushing on 25 carries and one score. He was especially tough on the Beavers final drive, gaining 17 yards on eight carries while battling an injury.

Cunha went 10 for 14 for 107 yards and a score before the injury. Between the two QBs, the Beavers completed passes to eight different receivers. Mustipher led the way with five catches and Walker finished with 84 yards receiving.

"Jarvis is relishing the roll of being a work horse. He was banged up a little, but kept battling," Hughes said. "We need ball distribution be a key to our offense, that's how you make it difficult for the defense, you can't key on any one player. It's critical to our success."

Trevin Swensen again reached double figures in tackles, making 10 stops total to lead the team. Vercher had six tackles and his first interception as a Beaver, while Bryce Broome finished with five tackles, two pass breakups and a fumble recovery.

The Beavers return home with another stiff NSIC South Division test, taking on No. 17 ranked University of Sioux Falls Saturday. The kickoff for Homecoming 2016 is set for 3 p.m. at Herb Parker Stadium.

About Minot State
Minot State University is a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) and NCAA Division II offering 14 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletics programs. The NSIC is a premier NCAA DII, 16-member conference featuring teams in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska and Iowa. The Beavers are the only public NCAA Division II institution in the state of North Dakota.