ABERDEEN, S.D. – The Minnesota State University Moorhead football team led 13-7 at halftime, but Northern State grabbed the momentum in the third quarter on its way to a 48-26 win over the Dragons in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference action Saturday in Aberdeen, S.D.

MSUM fell to 3-3 overall and 0-2 in the NSIC North, while Northern State improved to 2-4 overall and 2-0 in the north.

"We need to play better in the third quarter. That's been a problem for a few weeks," MSUM head coach Steve Laqua said. "Our special teams have to make improvements. It was tough to be against the wind for the second and third quarters. It made for some tough field position on both sides of the ball."

Sophomore quarterback Demetrius Carr threw for 177 yards and three scores for MSUM while rushing for a touchdown. Senior running back Zayne Medhaug rushed for a season-high 125 yards. Freshman Evan Moore, making his collegiate debut, had four catches for 40 yards. Junior receiver Cory Ambrose had two catches for 90 yards and two scores for MSUM.

Northern State outgained MSUM 498-388.

On defense, sophomore safety Abe Roehrich had eight tackles and an interception. Junior defensive end Ryan Dahleen and senior linebacker Chris Lee each had a sack. Dahleen forced a fumble and senior Steve Schutz recovered the fumble.
MSUM got on the board early, going on an 8-play, 77-yard drive, which was capped off by a 17-yard scoring strike from Carr to sophomore receiver Damon Gibson. 

"I was pleased with how our guys came out," Laqua said. "We controlled the line of scrimmage on offense, especially running the football."

The Dragons pushed the lead to 13-0 in the second when Carr scored from one yard out on a fourth and goal. Northern State got on the board with a touchdown run to cut the lead to 13-7, which was the halftime score.

MSUM's defense held Northern State to just 48 rushing yards in the first half.

The momentum switched in the third quarter. The Dragons went three-and-out to open the second half, and Northern took possession near midfield and later scored to tie the game at 13-13. The Dragons moved across midfield on their next drive but stalled and was forced to punt. The Wolves scored on a 64-yard touchdown run, giving the Wolves their first lead at 20-13 with 8:04 left in the third.

Going into a gusty wind, MSUM's offense managed to drive into Northern territory on its next drive but turned the ball over on downs. The teams exchanged punts again before the Wolves scored late in the quarter on a 68-yard touchdown pass to push the lead to 27-13.

"Offensively, we went three-and-out and didn't produce anything on the next drive," Laqua said. "And they got a little bit of momentum going with a couple of scores."

The Northern lead grew to 34-13 with a touchdown early in the fourth quarter. The Dragons answered back quickly as Carr hit Ambrose for a 67-yard touchdown. The extra point was missed, leaving MSUM down 34-19 with 9:51 left.

The Dragon defense forced a turnover on the next drive, as Dahleen sacked Kyle Lavand at the Dragon 45-yard line. Schutz recovered, and MSUM began to march.

Carr hooked up with Ambrose again, this time from 23 yards out, to cut the Northern State lead to 34-26 with 5:04 left.
MSUM was looking for a defensive stop, but a big 53-yard quick return by Erlandson set the Wolves up at the Dragon 31-yard line. A few plays later, Northern State scored to push the lead to 41-26.

"The key, we gave up that big kickoff return that put them on our side of the 50-yard line," Laqua said. "That allowed them to be in four-down territory and they converted a key fourth down."

The Dragons mounted a desperation drive in the final minute, moving into Northern State territory. Carr was intercepted by Barber, who returned the ball 75 yards for a score with 14 seconds left to add an insurance touchdown for Northern.

MSUM returns home to face rival Bemidji State on Oct. 17. The homecoming contest begins at 2 p.m. at Scheels Field at Nemzek Stadium.

"We have to build on the positives from this game. We were better running the football," Laqua said. "We need to work on our consistency. We had too many inconsistent series in the second and third quarter. We've got to turn the special teams around and make them a winning part of the game for us."

Steve d'Eustachio Stat of the Game: Today was Larry Scott's 500th consecutive Dragon football game. During this time that began 49 years ago and including today, the Dragons have compiled a 249-244-7 record. Today was the 41st game versus Northern State (19-22). The team the Dragons have played the most times during this incredible era has been Bemidji State (every year), with the Dragons holding a 29-18-1 record.