FAYETTE, Iowa – Despite setting a school record for total offense in a game, the Minnesota State University Moorhead football team came up just short in its season opener on Saturday, falling to Upper Iowa, 44-36 in action in Fayette, Iowa.

MSUM fell to 0-1 overall and in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference with the loss while Upper Iowa improved to 1-0 overall and in the league.

The Dragons set a school record with 709 total yards, beating the old school record set in 2013 against Minnesota Duluth. MSUM also ran 100 offensive plays, tying a mark the Dragons set against Southwest Minnesota State in 1971.

Junior running back Zayne Medhaug ran for a career-high 188 yards and two touchdowns for MSUM. Junior quarterback Jake Hodge threw for 331 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 80 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries.  Junior wide receiver Adam Jiskra had nine catches for 135 yards and a score while sophomore receiver Dan Grande had four catches for 109 yards and a score.

MSUM outgained Upper Iowa 709-524, but three turnovers proved costly for the Dragons.

On defense, sophomore linebacker Aaron Bohl led the Dragons with 13 tackles. Junior linebacker Chris Lee had nine tackles, including a team-best four for loss. Redshirt freshman safety Abe Roehrich and sophomore cornerback Sheldon Jones had sacks, while junior cornerback Chris Binford had an interception.

MSUM went into halftime with a 30-14 lead after an impressive first half but were unable to put the game away in the third quarter. Upper Iowa outscored the Dragons 30-6 in the fourth quarter in rallying for the win.

"The third quarter, offensively, we weren't able to finish drives, and that was the key piece," MSUM head coach Steve Laqua said. "We didn't finish our drives and they did. That inability to finish drives – that's something we need to work on. Certainly we need to learn from it."

Down 44-36, MSUM took over possession with 1:59 left at its own 19-yard line. The Dragons drove inside the 5-yard line but were unable to find the end zone on the game's final play, falling five yards short.

The Dragons struck quickly, thanks to Medhaug. His 38-yard run on the game's initial drive set up his 15-yard touchdown. The extra point was blocked, but MSUM led 6-0 just 31 seconds into the game.

Upper Iowa scored late in the quarter to take a 7-6 lead, but MSUM responded quickly. Redshirt freshman quarterback Demetrius Carr hit Grande for a 54-yard touchdown. Sophomore Michael Schwichtenberg hit the extra point, giving MSUM a 13-7 lead with 57 seconds left in the first.

"I was happy with how we started the game," Laqua said.

The lead grew to 20-7 when Hodge broke loose for a 32-yard touchdown, capping off a nine-play, 75-yard scoring drive. With the extra point, MSUM led 20-7 with 9:40 left in the half.

After forcing a three-and-out, MSUM didn't take long to push the lead to 27-7 as Medhaug scored from 67-yards out on the second play of the drive with 8:02 left.

Upper Iowa cut the lead to 27-14 with a touchdown with 6:28 left in the half. The Dragons added a field goal later in the half as Schwichtenberg converted from 26 yards out, giving MSUM a 30-14 lead that it took into half.

The two teams went scoreless in the third, although MSUM had chances to score. One drive ended in a fumble and another ended with a blocked field goal.

Upper Iowa cut the lead to 30-22 with a touchdown run early in the fourth.  After the Dragons went three-and-out, the Peacocks scored again and converted the two-point conversion to tie the game at 30-30 with 10:50 left.

MSUM moved into Upper Iowa territory thanks to a big pass play but fumbled, and Upper Iowa converted that turnover into points to take a 37-30 lead. MSUM came back, however, as Hodge hit Jiskra for a 44-yard touchdown with 5:57 left. The extra point was missed, leaving MSUM down 37-36.

Upper Iowa came back to push the lead to 44-36 after a Chris Smith touchdown run.

"Our lack of depth on defense caught up with us," Laqua said. "Your depth needs to come through in the fourth quarter, and we didn't have we what we needed. That's the sign of some young players developing and a program that is still growing and working to build that depth."

Junior Preston Prince had six catches for 91 yards for MSUM. Carr finished 3-of-4 passing for 83 yards and a score.

MSUM plays host to nationally-ranked Minnesota State, Mankato on Sept. 13 to open the home season.

"There are a lot of things we can build on," Laqua said. "There are a lot of things we need to correct, and there are lessons we need to learn. We've got to find the positives and build on them, and work to fix the correctable errors."

Steve d'Eustachio Stat of the Game: Before today, the last time the Dragons scored at least 36 points in a conference opening game, was in a 51-7 victory over Minnesota Morris in Sept. 1995.