Blue Hawks power past Mayville State to open NSAA play

DICKINSON, N.D. – It wasn't quite as crisp of a performance as people have come to expect from the eight-time North Star Athletic Association champion Blue Hawks, but Dickinson State overcame several impactful penalties to beat Mayville State, 41-18, to open NSAA play.

The day almost got off to a fantastic start for DSU after Krew Mathern stripped the ball from MSU QB Tim Salmon on just the second play from scrimmage, but the ball bounced right into the hands of the Comets keeping their drive alive. MSU ended up punting two plays later, but the field position gained kept the Blue Hawks from gaining huge momentum early.

The first DSU play from scrimmage was a 15-yard completion from Will Madler to tight end Nathan Schumacher, and the Blue Hawks looked to be off to the races after Madler connected with Noah Sickler for another long gain on the next play, but the play was called back after an offensive pass interference call negated the catch. Due to the penalty, DSU was pushed into a third-and-long situation and Madler's deep ball was picked off by the Comets and returned to the DSU 30.

Another penalty, this time a face mask, negated what would have been a big sack by Mathern got MSU into field goal range and they took advantage, going up 3-0 on a 22-yard make.

The Blue Hawks wouldn't trail for long, answering right back with a seven-play 67-yard drive capped off by a Braden Zuroff 8-yard touchdown run into the corner of the endzone. Chase Miller knocked home the extra point as part of his perfect kicking day that included going 5-5 on PATs and 2-2 on field goals (21 & 41).

A Mayville State punt gave DSU the ball back with three minutes remaining in the quarter, and they marched down to the MSU 2 as the first quarter came to a close.

The first play of the second quarter saw Kaden Kuntz score on a 2-yard rush to give DSU a 14-3 lead. The Blue Hawks offense sputtered a bit in the quarter, as a 21-yard field goal by Miller with 17 seconds left in the half accounted for their only other points as they took a 17-3 lead into the break.

Dickinson State got the second half started on a good note, as Zuroff scored his second touchdown of the day on a powerful 34-yard rush, breaking several tackles along the way, to put the Blue Hawks in control 24-3.

However, the Comets refused to go away, using a 19-play 77-yard drive that was extended by some DSU penalties to bring the score to 24-10.

The back-and-forth continued when Madler scrambled in from six yards out for his first rushing touchdown as a Blue Hawk to cap a drive that started with a 48-yard completion to Schumacher.

Dickinson State spent much of the fourth quarter getting some depth players in the game, as Miller's second field goal and an 8-yard touchdown run by Dickinson native Alex Praus capped the scoring for DSU.

"I'm proud of our guys for getting the win," said head coach Pete Stanton. "Our plan was to get as many of our players into the game and we were successful in doing that. We had some explosive plays on offense and had great balance. We have a tough stretch ahead of us and we need to keep getting better."

Madler went 17-30 for 244 yards and an interception in his DSU home debut, while Zuroff took 11 carries for 82 yards and 2 touchdowns to gather Player of the Game honors. Schumacher led the Blue Hawks in receiving with 5 catches for 99 yards while Noah Sickler chipped in 4 catches for 54 yards. Mathern did what he does best and led the DSU defense with 6 tackles including 1.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss as his school records continue to pile up.

The Blue Hawks will return to non-conference play next weekend when they head to Menomonie, Wisconsin to take on NCAA Division III University of Wisconsin-Stout.