Behind two rushing touchdowns from Wade Sullivan, the University of Minnesota Duluth secured a 34-21 road victory at Minot State on Saturday afternoon. The win improves UMD to a 9-0 all-time record against the Beavers and also gives them a 7-2 overall record on the season. 

Leading the way for the Bulldogs offensively was Sullivan. The senior posted his first 100-yard rushing game of the season as he notched 112 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Cazz Martin nearly clipped 100 yards as he tallied 92 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown. Through the air, quarterback Garrett Olson went 10 for 23 with 106 passing yards on the day. 

On the defensive side of the ball, UMD was led by linebacker Brad Dati who posted 12 total tackles, while also securing his first career interception. Michael Kirkendoll posted eight total tackles, one sack, and one pass breakup on Saturday afternoon. Dayvia Gbor chipped in two interceptions on the day, giving him a total of three for his career. 

The Beavers got the first possession of the game. After a few first downs from Ali Mohamed, Nathan Bursch notched a huge 13-yard sack to force a Minot State punt. On the ensuing punt, a muff by the Bulldogs gave the Beavers the ball inside UMD territory. Following a third down tackle by Kirkendoll, Minot elected to go for it on fourth down. MSU quarterback Dawson Macleary threw into traffic and Brad Dati came up with his first career interception to get the UMD offense onto the field. 
 
On UMD's first drive of the game, the Bulldogs looked for Martin to get their offense going. After starting at their own 21-yard line, three consecutive 10+ yard runs from Martin moved the Bulldogs into Minot territory. On a fourth and eight at the Minot 37-yard line, Olson looked for Byron Bynum but the pass was broken up, giving possession back to the Beavers. Following 3-and-outs for both sides, Minot would take over at their own 40-yard line with 3:53 remaining in the first quarter. On a second down and eight, Logan Eiden notched a massive sack for a loss of six yards. However, on third and fourteen, a completion on a crossing route gave the Beavers a 20-yard gain and a first down at the UMD 44-yard line. A few plays later, Minot found themselves threatening within the Bulldog RedZone. On the first play of the second quarter, a nine-yard touchdown pass gave the Beavers a 7-0 lead. 
 
On the ensuing possession, Olson found Kurtis Weigand coming across the field for a 6-yard gain. However, the offense stalled and was forced to punt. Minot got the ball back at the UMD 32-yard line with 13:44 remaining in the second quarter. A tackle for loss from Nate Pearson and a solid defense stand by the Bulldogs forced a missed Beavers field goal from 54 yards out. On the first play of the drive, Martin punched the ball forward for a 10-yard run. Olson then hit Sam Pitz on a tight end screen pass for another 10-yard gain. A few plays later, Olson swung the ball outside to Noah Skifton for a 10-yard gain and a first down at the Minot 42-yard line. On a fourth down and short at the MSU 34-yard line, Olson tried to hit McCormick, but the pass would be dropped, Minot would take over at their own 35-yard line with 7:09 left to play in the first half. On third and twenty, Austin Kurylo jumped a route and intercepted a pass. However, on the play, a roughing the passer call on UMD gave Minot an automatic first down and erased the Kurylo interception. UMD's defense wasn't fazed by the penalty and would force a MSU punt. The Bulldogs got the ball back at their own 20-yard line with 4:03 left on the clock. 
 
Following two failed runs, the Bulldogs were faced with a third down and thirteen. Olson found Martin on a screen pass for a massive 31-yard gain down the sidelines to the UMD 48-yard line. On the very next play, Olson hit Armani Carmickle for a seven-yard gain, plus a personal four penalty which moved UMD all the way to the Minot 30-yard line. On first down, Martin found a hole and posted a solid 14-yard run down to the 16. With 44 seconds left in the first half and faced with a third and two, UMD would use a timeout. On the ensuing play, Martin broke to the outside and gained one yard to setup a fourth a one at the MSU 7-yard line. On fourth down, Martin got the call again and notched a first down. On the next play, Bynum took the handoff and found the endzone from six yards out. UMD tied the game at 7-7 with just 33 seconds left in the first half. Minot would run out the clock and the teams would go into halftime tied at seven. 
 
UMD started the second half with possession. On a third down and nine, a sack for Minot forced a three-and-out and an Owen Davis punt. Minot took over at their own 40-yard line. On third and one, the NSIC leading rusher Ali Mohamed notched a 22-yard rush down to the UMD 29. On the next play, MSU quarterback Macleary fumbled the ball, which would be picked up by Bursch and ran back for a massive gain all the way back to the Minot 10-yard line. On the ensuing possession, UMD went to Curtis Cox who would knock down a 29-yard field goal to give the Bulldogs a 10-7 lead with 10:12 remaining in the third quarter. 
 
UMD would force another Minot punt and the Bulldogs offense went back to work. From the Minot 33, Wade Sullivan slashed and dashed for 17-yard gain. Three more 5+ yard runs from Sullivan set UMD up with an opportunity from the Minot six-yard line. One a first and goal, Sullivan cut the ball outside and walked into the endzone untouched to make the score 17-7 with 6:51 left in the third quarter. Four plays into the Minot drive, a Macleary would be picked off by Dayvia Gbor, giving UMD possession in Beaver territory. On the first play of the drive, Martin notched a 21-yard run down to the MSU 24. On a fourth and two, UMD used some trickery to get a first down. After a direct snap to John Larson, Johnny McCormick would take a double reverse and throw a 5-yard completion for a first down. On the next play, Martin would walk into the endzone from six yards out to give the Bulldogs a 24-7 advantage with two minutes left in the third quarter. 
 
Five minutes into the fourth quarter, the Beavers would use a double reverse to notch a 62-yard rushing touchdown to cut the UMD lead to 24-14 with 10:30 to play. The Bulldogs quickly went back to work on offense. Cox would finish a six-play drive with a 39-yard field goal to increase the Duluth lead to 27-14 with 8:01 left in the fourth quarter. On MSU's next drive, Gbor would tally his second interception of the game, giving possession back to UMD with just over seven minutes left to play. On the second play of the drive, Sullivan broke free and found the endzone from 40 yards out to give the Bulldogs a 34-14 advantage with 6:31 remaining. Minot would add one more score and the Bulldogs would walk out of Minot with a 34-21 road victory.

Up Next
The Bulldogs will return home next weekend for a matchup with Augustana (SD). Kickoff from James S. Malosky Stadium is set for 1:05 PM on Saturday, Nov. 6 in Duluth.