UMD Athletics

The No. 17 University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs Football team overcame a slow first half which saw them score zero points, beating the University of Mary Marauders 27-12. The Bulldogs are now 6-2 on the year and 6-1 in the NSIC, while the Marauders are now 3-5 and 2-5 in the NSIC.

The Marauders threatened to take an early lead on the Bulldogs, moving to UMD's 23-yard line before Joey Krouse recovered a fumble to stop UMary's momentum. The Bulldogs couldn't respond despite a 22-yard run from Alex Riley, and the game remained at zeros.

UMary attempted to fake out the Bulldogs with a fake punt, but a key tackle by Matt Marusich stopped the fake and gave UMD great field position, starting the drive on the Marauders' 33-yard line. Unfortunately, the Bulldogs couldn't take advantage of the good field position, and were stopped on downs.

UMD returned to the redzone in the second quarter, but an interception by Travis Biery kept the Bulldogs at zero points. The Marauders nearly got the first points of the game right at the end of the first half, but the Bulldogs defense stayed strong, with Mark Rendl intercepting the last chance the Marauders had to score. The first half ended with the Bulldogs and Marauders being tied at zero points.

The Bulldogs tried a fake punt of their own in their starting second half drive, but the Marauders were able to stop UMD. UMary was unable to take advantage of the good field position, with an Allen Pearson Jr. sack forcing the Marauders into a three and out.

After the stop, the Bulldogs offense found their footing. Three big gains in four plays from Derrick Johnson (25 yards), Francis O'Malley (14 yards), and Derrick Johnson's touchdown (22 yards) got the Bulldogs on the board. Ryder Patterson ran into the endzone for a two-point conversion to put UMD up 8-0.

The scoring didn't end there, as the Bulldogs were able to recover the kickoff caught in the heavy North Dakota wind to set the Bulldogs up for another score, which was a Drew Henson short-range field goal to give UMD an 11-0 edge. The defense got another three and out, and the Bulldogs ended quarter three with an eleven point lead.

The Marauders weren't going to go away easy. The Bulldogs attempted a 59-yard field goal, which would've been the longest in UMD history had the kick not been blocked by the Marauders. UMary followed that up with their first touchdown of the game on a Xavier Brackenridge touchdown, bringing the Marauders within five. The game would stay at 11-6 with Jarrett Bennett's sack of Ryan Blair.

UMary continued to put pressure on the Bulldogs, recovering an onside kick and completing a 28-yard touchdown pass to Seb Harris to take the lead over the Bulldogs, 12-11. However, the defending NSIC Defensive Player of the Week Jayce Walrath got a big interception on the two-point try, bringing it back for two to retake the lead for UMD, 13-12. It was the first two-point attempt return for the Bulldogs since Jim Johnson's return against Central Washington in 2006.

Riley Grossman helped stretch the lead out further for the Bulldogs, finding Parker Schuh on a 50-yard touchdown pass to stretch the UMD lead back to eight. UMary got stopped again on a three and out, and the Bulldogs put it away on the following drive, this time with the help of a Francis O'Malley 62-yard run, followed three plays after with a Ryder Patterson 15-yard touchdown run to bring the UMD lead to 27-12. UMary's last attempt to score fell short, and the Bulldogs took the win in Bismarck.

Bulldog Notes:

• The Bulldogs outgained the Marauders by 145 yards, 385-240.

• Riley Grossman went 10-18 for 132 yards and a touchdown.

• Derrick Johnson led the Bulldogs in yards with 82-yards and brought in a touchdown.

• Ross Rivord and Jayce Walrath led the Bulldogs with nine tackles each.

The Bulldogs return home next Saturday on October 31st to play Jamestown on Halloween. Kickoff is set for 12:00 p.m.