Box Score
MOORHEAD, Minn. -- The Minnesota State University Moorhead football team had its 2012 Homecoming spoiled on Saturday as the Dragons fell to Northern State, 45-7, in front of 2,007 fans at Alex Nemzek Stadium in Moorhead, Minn.

MSUM (0-5, 0-5 NSIC) trailed just 17-0 at halftime, but a big 21-point third quarter helped the Wolves (2-3, 2-3 NSIC) pull away in the second half.

Freshman safety Shea DeJong, who is third in the NSIC in tackles, led the way for the Dragon defense with 14 tackles. Sophomore linebacker Nick Seedorff added nine tackles, while senior lineman Steve Parks had five tackles, including 3.5 for a loss. Senior Cory Capra had a sack for MSUM.

On offense, senior tight end Shawn Marlowe had an excellent game with five catches for 104 yards and a touchdown. Freshman receiver Adam Jiskra had four catches for 40 yards, while freshman quarterback Jake Hodge threw for 152 yards. Freshman quarterback Ryan Toelle was 5-of-8 passing for 79 yards and a touchdown in relief of Hodge.

Northern State outgained MSUM, 408-193, although the Dragons did throw for 233 yards. MSUM committed three turnovers in the game and was whistled for nine penalties.

"We've got to take care of the penalty situation," MSUM head coach Steve Laqua said. "We are a better team than that."

MSUM drove into Northern territory on its first offensive possession, thanks to an 18-yard pass from Hodge to freshman Garrett Shelley and a 20-yard pass from Hodge to Marlowe. However, the Dragons stalled at the Wolves' 31-yard line and turned the ball over on downs.

Northern moved into Dragon territory, but MSUM's defense held tough and forced a field goal. MSUM blocked Felipe Alfaia's first 41-yard attempt, but an offsides penalty gave the Wolves another chance. A second attempt from 36 yards was missed, but another costly offsides penalty gave the Wolves a third shot. Northern faked the field goal, and quarterback Jared Jacobson hit senior Logan Fahnhorst for a 14-yard touchdown to give the Wolves a 7-0 lead with 5:50 left in the first half.

Northern pushed the lead to 14-0 early in the second quarter as Jacobson hit Mark Hanley for a 15-yard score.

Midway through the second quarter, the Dragons began to march. Hodge hit Marlowe for a 31-yard gain to bring MSUM into Northern territory, and then hit Jiskra for a 20-yard gain. The Dragons had a 2nd-and-2 from the 6-yard line, but got no closer to the end zone. They attempted a 37-yard field goal but it was wide right, leaving the score at 14-0.

"I felt like our passing game took steps forward," Laqua said. "Shawn Marlowe made plays when he had the opportunities."

Northern added a field goal late in the second quarter to make it 17-0, which was the halftime tally.

In the third quarter, Northern added to the lead on a 2-yard run by John Hughes to make it 24-0. The Dragons went three-and-out, and the Wolves proceeded to go 58 yards on seven plays and scored when Jacobson hit Hanley for a 44-yard score.

After the Dragons fumbled the ensuing kickoff, Northern took over at the 20-yard line and Hughes broke free for a 20-yard run to take a 38-0 lead.

"As the momentum builds against you, there's got to be some collective leadership to stop that momentum and change it around as a group," Laqua said. "We weren't able to stop that. Some of that comes with maturity."

Northern added a touchdown early in the fourth to push the lead to 45-0. The Dragons got on the board late in the fourht quarter when Toelle hit Marlowe for a 25-yard score to make it 45-7 with 3:11 left.

A big difference in the game was third-down conversions. Northern was 10-of-18 for the game, while MSUM was 2-of-14.

The Dragons hit the road to face Minnesota-Duluth on Oct. 6 in Duluth, Minn.