MINOT, ND -- The Beavers improved to 1-4 on the year and 1-3 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play, while the Bemidji State fell to 0-5 and 0-4 in the NSIC.
"Yeah, I mean, what a testament to the leadership on our team. We have a lot of guys that carry a lot. Nobody quits on each other. That's a team we have a ton of respect for in Bemidji — they were in the third round of the playoffs last year and are expertly coached by Coach Bolte and his staff. So it's a big win for our program. It's only the second time in school history we've come out on the better end of the Beaver battle, and I'm proud of our guys," Shields said.
Devan Daniels led all Beavers rushers with 93 yards in the contest, picking up 5.5 yards per carry. Carson Chrisman also added 77 yards and one touchdown on the ground, averaging 4.5 yards per carry. Evan Lovett chipped in with 63 yards and one touchdown as well.
"I think we took another step forward there," Shields said of the ground game. "We didn't feel good about how we played up front last week against Winona. I thought we did a nice job today establishing the run. Our guys up front played hard. Evan — he's not getting knocked back very often, and he had some tough runs that go unnoticed but move the chains. And the ball security was very good today. Carson probably doesn't get enough credit for all he does with his decision-making and toughness. Devan's a playmaker — one of the faster players in the league — and I'm really proud of them."
Nalu Cordeiro paced the Minot State defensive effort, totaling two interceptions. The first interception was returned for a touchdown to take a 28-21 lead. The second interception came soon after as Bemidji State was attempting to get into the end zone to force overtime. Brayan Augustin added five tackles and one recovered fumble in the win.
"That's as big as it gets," Shields said of Cordeiro's late pick-six. "He's a special player — as a true freshman last year he had the ball in his hands in big moments. He's been banged up and that's hurt us, but in a game-winning situation his football instincts show. Special players step up in the fourth quarter when the game's on the line, and he did. Credit also to our coaching staff — everyone contributed. We were sputtering on offense and missed some chances in the second half that could've made it look different, but it was a total team win."
The Beavers won the turnover battle in Saturday's game, forcing three turnovers while avoiding any giveways, with Minot State turning those takeaways into seven points. Minot State put together a powerful performance on the ground, racking up 319 rushing yards while averaging 5.2 yards per carry and out-rushing Bemidji State by 89 yards.
Defensively, Minot State held up fairly well against the Bemidji State passing attack, holding the Beavers to 196 yards through the air. The Beavers defense disrupted the Bemidji State passing game on the way to grabbing two interceptions and breaking up three Bemidji State passes.
Minot State's offense made the most of its trips to the red zone, scoring on three of its three trips, with all of those scores being touchdowns.
"We've still got a long way to go. It wasn't easy — we made it hard on ourselves at times — but we found a way," Shields said. "Next week is another challenge; Moorhead's one of the better teams in the league with a first-team All-American quarterback and an excellent receiver group. We'll have our hands full and will need to play our best football."
How It Happened
Minot State got on the scoreboard first with 4:50 left in the first quarter to take a 7-0 lead.Bemidji State then tied it up at 7-7 before the Beavers responded with a one-yard touchdown rush from to jump back in front 14-7.
Minot State kept Bemidji State off the scoreboard and increased its lead to 21-7 with 1:18 left in the second quarter.
Game Notes
» Bemidji State outgained Minot State 426-319 in the contest.
» Minot State won the turnover battle 3-0 after intercepting two passes and recovering one fumble.
» The Beavers scored first with 4:50 remaining in the first quarter and never trailed the rest of the game on their way to victory.
» Minot State had their highest scoring quarter in the second quarter, when they put up 14 points.
» Minot State converted 4 of 13 third downs while Bemidji State was successful on 7 of 11.
» Minot State went 5-for-5 on fourth down, converting on 100 percent of attempts.
» Minot State gave up just 14 points in five Bemidji State trips to the red zone.
» Minot State forced two red zone turnovers in the contest.
» The Beavers didn't allow a sack in the contest.
» Minot State won the time of possession battle 35:59 to 24:01.
» Bart McAninch led the Bemidji State passing attack, completing 21 of his 29 attempts for 196 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions.
» Drayton Lehman was Bemidji State's leading receiver with 112 yards.
This story created through content automation technology from Data Skrive.
