MINOT, N.D. -- Minot State put together a 10-play, 61-yard drive, culminating in a two-yard rushing touchdown from with 2:51 remaining in the ballgame to give the Beavers a 17-10 win over Concordia, St. Paul on Saturday afternoon at First Western Bank Field at Herb Parker Stadium in NSIC action.

The Beavers improved to 1-6 on the year and 1-6 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play, while the Golden Bears fell to 2-5 and 1-5.

Myles West totaled 125 yards to lead the Beavers' ground attack and added one touchdown in the game, picking up 4.6 yards per carry along the way. The 100-yard performance was the first of the true freshman's collegiate career. Erik Palmquist also tacked on 75 yards on the ground, picking up 6.2 yards per carry. Dondrae Fair chipped in with 63 yards and one touchdown as well, picking up 6.3 yards per carry.

Fair's most prolific target in the ballgame was Daniel Stokes, who caught one pass for 36 yards.

Carson Cayko led the Minot State defensive effort, collecting nine tackles, 3.0 tackles for loss, and two sacks. Matt Posas added one interception and Philip Green had one recovered fumble in the win.

The Beavers won the turnover battle in Saturday's game, forcing two turnovers while coughing the ball up one time, with Minot State turning those takeaways into seven points. Minot State put together a strong performance on the ground, racking up 258 rushing yards while averaging 4.5 yards per carry and out-rushing Concordia, St. Paul by 214 yards.

Defensively, Minot State did an impressive job limiting the Concordia, St. Paul offensive attack, holding the Golden Bears to 179 total yards. The Beavers kept Concordia, St. Paul under 150 yards on both the ground and through the air, allowing 135 passing and 44 rushing yards.

Coach's Comments
"It is emotional, for all our our players, our coaching staff, all the families involved, everyone attached to our program," first-year Minot State coach Ian Shields said of the team's first win. "We've been working really hard since this summer frankly; we're on the right track

"Today was by no means easy, it was back and forth down to the last play, but we persevered, and we're growing."

How It Happened

Minot State scored first and opened up a 7-0 lead on the game's opening drive after recovering a fumble on the opening kick-off. Fair ran the ball in from 3 yards out for the early lead. Concordia, St. Paul scored to go ahead 10-7 before the Beavers scored again to even it up at 10-10 on a 44-yard Jeremy Caruso.

Minot State followed with a 2-yard touchdown run at the 2:51 mark in the fourth quarter by West and grabbed a 17-10 lead in the process. Neither team scored again in the game.

Game Notes

» Minot State outgained Concordia, St. Paul 309-179, including a 258-44 advantage on the ground.
» Minot State won the turnover battle 2-1 after intercepting one pass and recovering one fumble.
» Minot State converted 4 of 14 third downs while Concordia, St. Paul was successful on 7 of 17.
» Cayko led the Beavers with nine tackles.
» Justin Cash punted five times for the Beavers with an average of 50.6 yards per punt while pinning the Golden Bears inside their own 20 two times.
» The Beavers didn't allow a sack in the contest.
» The Beavers racked up eight tackles for loss and added three sacks.
» Minot State won the time of possession battle 32:52 to 27:08.
» Conner Cordts led the Golden Bears passing attack, completing 18 of his 36 attempts for 135 yards with one interception.
» Drew Enke was Concordia, St. Paul's leading receiver with 45 yards.

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