NORMAL, Ill. – No. 1 ranked North Dakota State (5-0, 1-0 MVFC) took advantage of early mistakes by No. 6 Illinois State (3-2, 0-1 MVFC) and ran away with a 37-3 win over the Redbirds as part of Family Weekend at Hancock Stadium on Saturday.
How It Happened:
•   After a fumble on the first drive of the game by the Redbirds, North Dakota State found the end zone on a 35-yard pass from Trey Lance to Noah Gindorff to make it 7-0 … less than three minutes later, a 53-yard run by Ty Brooks made it a two-score game at 13-0 after a failed two-point attempt by the Bison.
•   The Redbirds got on the scoreboard with just over two minutes left in the first quarter, when Sam Fenlason connected on a 25-yard field goal to trim the Bison lead to 13-3.
•   A 38-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa with :07 remaining in the first quarter gave NDSU a 16-3 lead headed to the second quarter.
•   NDSU added another touchdown on a four-yard run by Adam Cofield with 7:17 left in the second quarter, as the Bison maintained a 23-3 lead at halftime.
•   Late in the third quarter, Lance found Christian Watson on a screen pass that went for 42 yards to make it 30-3 and a fourth-quarter score by Ben Ellefson on a seven-yard pass from Lance sealed the win for the Bison at 37-3.
Game Notes: Â Â
•   Defensive tackle John Ridgeway led the way for the Redbirds with a career-best nine tackles, including five solo stops.
•   Steven Podkulski recorded his third sack of the season in the contest, the lone sack on the day for the ISU defense.
•   Punter JT Bohlken booted a career-long 75-yard punt in the contest and averaged 43.1 yards per punt against the Bison … the 75-yard punt ties Bohlken for the longest punt by a Redbird in a MVFC contest and is the fifth-longest punt in school history.
Up Next:
The Redbirds begin a two-game road swing next Saturday in Carbondale, Illinois, when they face off against the Southern Illinois Salukis at 6 p.m.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Â Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
Â
