SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- Minot State battled all day long with the Sioux Falls Cougars, only to come up one play short as the Beavers fell 7-0 on the road Saturday afternoon in NSIC action.
The Cougars improved to 2-2 on the year and 2-2 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play, while the Beavers fell to 0-4 overall and 0-4 in conference matchups.
Myles West paced the Beavers rushing attack by accumulating 49 yards over the course of the game. Evan Lovett also added 48 yards on the ground, averaging 4.4 yards per carry.
Josh Pinello pulled in one catch for 27 yards.
Lafayette Bade paced the Minot State defensive effort, totaling 1.0 tackle for loss, one sack, and one recovered fumble. Emmett Espino added seven tackles, 3.0 tackles for loss, and two sacks, and Carson Cayko had nine tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss, and one sack in the loss.
Minot State's defense held up against Sioux Falls' offense, allowing 323 total yards. The Beavers defense disrupted Sioux Falls' backfield all game, racking up four sacks and nine total tackles for loss. The seven points allowed was the fewest by Minot State since a 38-7 win over South Dakota School of Mines on Oct. 15, 2011.
Coach's Comments
"We made big strides today defensively; I'm really proud of the effort, the best we've played by far," head coach
Ian Shields said. "We were improved in the kicking game as well - good execution overall and a nice job creating an advantage in the field-position battle.
"Offensively, we obviously didn't take advantage of multiple opportunities presented. Give credit to Sioux Falls' defense, but we need to be more competent in the critical situations and be able to capitalize.
"It hurts, because the improvement of this team is obvious and the game was there to be won - our guys are playing hard and we're really competing against some good people," Minot State's coach added. "We just need to dust ourselves off, go back to work, make some necessary adjustments, and get ready for the next one.
"I'm encouraged by the resilience and toughness of our men, there's no flinch there. Building a program and "climbing the mountain" isn't for the faint of heart, but there are better days ahead with continued effort and a growth mindset."
How It Happened
The Beavers looked poised to open the scoring late in the first half, marching to the Sioux Falls 9-yard line before a fumble ended the drive.
Sioux Falls broken the scoreless tie when Adam Mullen threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Jaelon Taylor for the games only score with 2 minutes, 54 seconds left in the third quarter.
Minot State threatened once again early in the fourth quarter, driving to the Cougars 25 before the drive stalled and the Cougars took over on downs.
A final Beaver drive ended on a missed fourth-and-2 late in the fourth quarter at the Sioux Falls 32, as the Cougars held on for the win.
Game Notes
» Sioux Falls outgained Minot State 323-201 in the contest.
» Minot State had their highest scoring quarter in the fourth period, when they put up zero points.
» Minot State converted 2 of 13 third downs while Sioux Falls was successful on 3 of 13.
» Cayko led the Beavers with nine tackles.
» Justin Cash punted five times for the Beavers with an average of 46.4 yards per punt while pinning the Cougars inside their own 20 one time.
» The Beavers didn't allow a sack in the contest.
» The Beavers racked up nine tackles for loss and added four sacks.
» Camden Dean led the Cougars passing attack, completing 11 of his 19 attempts for 101 yards.
» Dylan Rudningen led the Sioux Falls rushing attack with 131 yards.
This story created through content automation technology from Data Skrive.
