The University of Minnesota Duluth has never lost to a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference North Division opponent at home and the Bulldogs weren't about to see that change Saturday afternoon.
 
UMD is a perfect 28-0 against visiting North Division teams since the NSIC instituted a divisional format in 2008, with the latest victim being Minnesota State University-Moorhead, which the Bulldogs turned back 42-34  before a sun-drenched crowd of 4,120 at James S. Malosky Stadium.
 
The Bulldogs, who never trailed the entire day, held what appeared to be a comfortable 35-10 lead (after scoring on each of their first five possessions) before the Dragons reeled off 17 straight points in the final five minutes of the first half. Midway through the third quarter and two plays after junior outside linebacker Zach Bassuener pounced on a fumbled punt , senior quarterback Drew Bauer hooked up on a 41-yard touchdown pass to junior wide out D.J. Hebert to put the Bulldogs up 42-27. After that, it was clamp down time for the UMD defense as they limited the Dragons to just 49 yards of total offense the entire second half.

"It was relentless effort, not just from me but from our team as a whole," said Bassuener, who registered two of the team's three sacks in addition to recovering a fumble. "We have guys that are relentless and like to get after the quarterback and everyone on offense."

 

Senior wide out Beau Bofferding had  a pair of touchowns, caught a career-high eight passes and  rolled up 170 multipurpose yards while Bauer was 19-for-31 for 232 yards and four touchdowns.  The Bulldogs forced four turnovers, converting three of those miscues into 20 points en route to derailing MSU-Moorhead for the 15^th consecutive time and hiking their home winning streak to 19 games. Senior inside linebacker Beau Bates topped both teams with 12 total tackles, including 10 solos, and forced three fumbles.

UMD utililzed a balance offensive attack, generating 289 yards through the air and 254 yards on the ground. Senior running back Darren Walker rushed for a game-high 96 yards on 17 carries while true freshman running back Jaleen Jones added 91 yards on just two touches. The first of those-- which was just his third rushing attempt as a collegian -- went for 85 yards and a second-quarter touchdown. That was the longest run from scrimmage by a Bulldog since All-American Isaac Odim's 86-yard jaunt against Concordia University-St. Paul on Aug. 29, 2009.

"We have an offensive goal of 400 yards of total offense each game" said head coach Curt Wiese. "We need to continue to play at a high rate offensively. We have some really good weapons on offense and our offensive line is continuing to play well."
 
The Bulldogs, now 4-1 overall on the year, will pay a visit to Minot State University next Saturday afternoon.