NORMAL, Ill. – For a second straight week the game was decided in the final seconds for Illinois State, as Northern Iowa held a slim lead late in the contest on Saturday. However, following an ISU touchdown a recovered onside kick gave the No. 23 ranked Panthers (5-3, 4-1 MVFC) a 24-21 win over the Redbirds (4-4, 2-3 MVFC) on a chilly and blustery day at Hancock Stadium.
How It Happened:
•   The Panthers took advantage of a Redbird fumble on their first drive of the game, turning it into seven points after a 3-yard touchdown run by Amauri Pesek-Hickson capped off an 8-play scoring drive to make it 7-0 with 9:29 left in the first quarter.
•   Illinois State came right back to tie the game at 7-7 on a 1-yard touchdown run by quarterback Zack Annexstad on the ensuing drive for the Redbirds, who drove 75 yards in 10 plays and took over three minutes off the clock.
•   UNI regained the lead on a 1-yard run by Pesek-Hickson less than a minute into the second quarter to make it 14-7 in favor of the Panthers.
•   A 7-yard touchdown pass from Theo Day to Desmond Hutson increased the UNI lead to 21-7 with 8:56 left before halftime.
•   The Redbirds then took advantage of a Panthers fumble and cut the lead to 21-14 on an 8-yard touchdown pass from Annexstad to Daniel Sobkowicz with 51 seconds left before halftime.
•   After a scoreless third quarter by both squads, UNI extended its lead to 24-14 on a 31-yard field goal by Matthew Cook with just 2:48 left in the contest.
•   Annexstad then connected with Cam Grandy on a 17-yard touchdown pass with 27 seconds left in the game to cut the UNI advantage to a field goal at 24-21.
•   The ensuing onside kick attempt was recovered by the Panthers, however, as they kneeled out the game for the victory.
Game Notes: Â Â
•   Grandy hauled in a career-high 11 passes for 112 yards, including his third touchdown of the season with the late grab from Annexstad in the fourth quarter.
•   Annexstad finished the game with a career-best 292 yards passing on a personal-best 33 completions and accounted for all three Redbird touchdowns with two passing scores and one on the ground.
•   Lavoise-Deontae McCoy recorded a career-high 14 tackles against the Panthers and finished with half sack and one pass breakup.
•   Jalan Gaines also tied his career high with 10 tackles, and added his third sack of the season.
•   The sack by Jake Anderson was his first of the season and first of his young career.
•   The interception by Mark Cannon Jr. was the first of his career and fifth of the season for the Redbird defense.
Next Up:
Illinois State will travel to Springfield, Missouri, next Saturday for a matchup against the Missouri State Bears at Plaster Stadium, with kickoff set for 2 p.m.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Â Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
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