ALLENDALE, Mich.--The Fighting Sioux have played their final NCAA Division II football game.
UND's storied run at the Division II level, one that spanned more than a century of football, came to an end this afternoon with a 21-14 NCAA second round playoff loss at top-ranked and two-time defending national champion Grand Valley State.
The win was the 39th row for the Lakers, who have won four of the last five Division II titles.
It did not come without a fight from the seventh-ranked Sioux, who were hit hard by injuries to key players, both prior to and during the game.
The Lakers built a 14-0 halftime lead while limiting UND's high powered offense to just 83 yards and five first downs in the first half.
Then, in the third quarter, UND senior punter Brent Halfmann (Stephen, Minn.) was unable to corral a low snap and had his punt attempt blocked, giving the Lakers the ball at the Sioux 22-yard line. One player later, GVSU quarterback Brad Iciek lobbed a pass over the middle to Jonn Mathews and the junior tight end made a diving catch just inside the Sioux goal line to push the lead to 20-0.
GVSU kicker Todd Carter missed the extra point attempt, but a personal foul call against the Sioux gave Carter another chance, and he made good on the second try to make it a 21-0 Laker lead.
But then the Sioux began to rally against long odds for the second straight year at Lubbers Stadium.
After a poor Grand Valley punt gave UND the ball at the Laker 39-yard line, the Sioux began benefitting from some breaks. On the first play of the drive, freshman quarterback Jake Landry (Grand Forks), playing in relief of injured starter Danny Freund (Jr., Kenosha, Wis.), fired a rocket over the middle that bounced off of the hands of Laker free safety Jacob McGuckin at his own 15-yard line. The ball ricocheted in the air behind McGuckin, were UND senior receiver Weston Dressler (Bismarck, N.D.) calmly hauled it in at the 10 and raced the rest of the way to the end zone.
Sophomore kicker Brandon Hellevang (Fargo, N.D.) had his extra point attempt blocked ? his first miss in 106 attempts ? but the Sioux were on the board at 21-6 with 7:27 left in the third quarter.
Then it was UND's defense to make a big play.
With Grand Valley State going for it on 4th-and-1 from the Sioux 41, sophomore linebacker Bobby Stroup (Fargo, N.D.) burst through the line and stopped Lakers' running back Blake Smolen for a loss of two, turning the ball over to the Sioux offense at their own 43 late in the quarter.
Four players later freshman running back Josh Murray (Pepin, Wis.) found the end zone from three yards out, and then added a two-point conversion to cut the deficit to 21-14 with 1:08 left in the third quarter.
But that same 21-14 count would still be on the stadium clock 15 minutes later, despite a handful opportunities for the Sioux to tie the game.
UND's best chance to pull even came after a James Berezik fumble inside Laker territory that was recovered by Stroup. But the Sioux, hindered by a holding penalty, were unable to move the ball and were forced to punt.
The Lakers then strung together a 14-play, seven-minute drive that ran off all but the game's final two minutes. GVSU converted on two key third downs and a fourth down to keep the drive alive, then gambled on a 4th-and-3 on UND's 15 that was thwarted by a Donovan Alexander (Sr., Winnipeg, Manitoba) pass breakup.
UND's final comeback hopes were extinguished, though, when Landry was sacked by Laker All-American Anthony Adams on 4th-and-1 from the Sioux 22.
The Lakers advance to the Division II quarterfinals with the win and will face the NCC's Central Washington.
UND, meanwhile, will begin its jump to Division I-Football Championship Subdivision competition next season.
Smolen and Berezik each ran for more than 100 yards as the Lakers piled up 280 yards of rushing. The Sioux were able hold Iciek, a Harlon Hill Trophy finalist, to 10-of-24 passing for 153 yards.
Landry finished the game 8-for-12 for 110 yards and the touchdown to Dressler, who finished with five catches for 94 yards.
Freund completed 9-of-17 passes for 66 yards before leaving the game.
Notes: Dressler, a Harlon Hill Trophy finalist, finished his remarkable career as UND's all-time leader in virtually every receiving category possible. His 243 career receptions rank 15th in Division II history and his 38 career touchdown catches are tied for 17th all-time. Dressler also finished the 2007 season with 1,272 receiving yards, breaking the UND single-season record he initially set in 2006 ... Freund's 2,860 passing yards this season are the second-most in UND history, 101 yards shy of Kelby Klosterman's school record. Freund also completed 209 passes this season, third-best in program history ... Sophomore running back Ryan Chappell (Grand Forks) finished the second with 1,640 rushing yards, a number topped only by Phillip Moore in Sioux history. Moore ran for a school-record 1,771 yards in 1997 and 1,722 yards in 1998 ... Today's game was the final for UND's 12 seniors, who went 41-10 and made the NCAA postseason in each of their four seasons. The senior class of 2007 includes: DB Donovan Alexander (Winnipeg, Manitoba), OL Brett Bauer (Dickinson, N.D.), DL Alex Cadwell (Stillwater, Minn.), WR Weston Dressler (Bismarck, N.D.), P Brent Halfmann (Stephen, Minn.), OL Andy Hoffelt (Williston, N.D.), OL Nathan Johnston (Lignite, N.D.), LB Robbie Meek (Bloomington, Minn.), OL Justin Muscha (Fessenden, N.D.), TE Troy Ott (Dickinson, N.D.), FB Andrew Sorbo (Adams, N.D.) and DB Tyler Weigelt (Fessenden, N.D.).
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