Augie fell to Bemidji State but still won the NSIC title outright

SIOUX FALLS, SD (Dakota News Now) – The Augustana Viking football team was crowned NSIC champions for the second straight season on the final day of the regular season, ultimately losing 17-10 to Bemidji State on Saturday afternoon at Chet Anderson Stadium.

The Vikings clinched the championship in the match played on Saturday, when Minnesota State lost 30-16 to Minnesota Duluth. AU improved to 8-3 this year and finished 8-2 in the NSIC, while the Beavers jumped to 8-3, 7-3.

Gunnar Hensley completed 16 of 31 passes for 144 yards and no touchdowns or interceptions, while Jarod Epperson rushed for 57 yards on 23 carries. Canyon Bauer caught four passes for 47 yards and Isaiah Huber added 41 yards on five receptions.

Kade Lynott had another impressive game, recording a career-best 15 tackles while adding a sack. Peyton Buckley had 12 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss and TJ Murray had an interception.

Augustana ran six plays on its opening drive before a punt took control of BSU. The Beavers marched down the field, taking seven plays to go 54 yards and setting up a first down and 10 yards from the AU 31. The defense put its foot in there and allowed a four-yard run between three incompletions to get the ball back. crime.

The Vikings appeared to have found something on the next drive, marching to the BSU 9-yard line for a second and eight, but a run for no gain and a run for a loss of one yard set up a drifting 26-yard field goal. He just left and kept the match goalless.

BSU continued into the second quarter before opening the scoring with a touchdown to complete a 13-play, 71-yard drive and give the Beavers a 7-0 lead.

The Vikings’ three-and-out looked to give the Beavers even more momentum as they advanced 40 yards in three plays to reach the AU 40. In a defense that made plays when necessary, Murray went on the field and collected the ball. One pass inside the AU 20 and he takes it back to the 50 yard line. A late kick on the comeback set the Vikings up at the BSU 37 at AU.

A stop on fourth down in the red zone allowed the Beavers to take back control on offense. Three consecutive punts gave the Vikings a chance to score with less than a minute left in the first half, and after the offense advanced 30 yards, Jake Pecina split the uprights to pull within 7-3 at the half.

Lynott, who played nine plays in the second half, collected a fourth sack to turn the tide. The offense started humming there, moving down the field on a 13-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a Huber touchdown and gave AU its first lead of the day, 10-7, with 4:50 left in the third quarter.

BSU made its next move in the fourth quarter, cashing in on a field goal to tie the game at 10-10 with 12:18 left. After three consecutive punts, The Beavers advanced 45 yards in six plays to take a 17-10 lead. The Vikings ran 15 plays and a fourth-and-9 led to the BSU 23, but Hensley’s pass fell incomplete and the game reached the final score.

The Vikings will now wait for the NCAA selection show to find out their next opponent. It will be broadcast on Sunday afternoon at 17.00 NCAA.com

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