The No. 4 Mavericks of Minnesota State University, Mankato kept their streak alive against Upper Iowa on the football field Saturday afternoon in Fayette. The nationally-ranked and undefeated (11-0) Mavericks took advantage of first half miscues by the Peacocks to claim a 31-14 at halftime. MSU dominated the second half holding the ball for nearly 18 of the 30 minutes and outscoring their hosts 32-7 in the final two quarters. Upper Iowa, who honored 14 seniors prior to the game, falls to 2-9 on the season.
Minnesota State opened the game with an interception return for a touchdown, but Upper Iowa answered on their next possession when
Zach Reader found
DJ Emsweller streaking down the sideline for a 46-yard score to even the game at 7-7. Trailing 10-7 on their next turn with the ball, the Peacocks were forced to punt, but an 8-yard punt set up the Mavericks for another touchdown. MSU added their third touchdown of the game on the first play of the second quarter, but UIU continued to fight.
Reader capped off a 12-play, 45-yard drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass to
Alexander Stevens on a slant to the goal line. The drive was set up by a defensive stop after Jonathon Argueta-Herrera boomed a punt 82 yards to the Minnesota State 1-yard line.
With less than a minute to play in the half, UIU pushed Minnesota State into a fourth and 11 from the 43-yard line. The Mavericks took a timeout to decide what to do the tricky field position and decided to go for it. The choice paid off with a 43-yard touchdown pass down the middle to Justin Arnold from JD Ekowa.
After halftime, the Mavericks scored a touchdown on all six possessions except their final one when they lined up in the victory formation. In total, eight different Minnesota State players found the end zone for a score. Shane Zylstra and Justin Taormina each scored a pair of touchdowns.
UIU's final points of the 2019 season came with under two minutes to play. Reader found senior
Brandyn Tulloch for a 5-yard touchdown that ended an 8-play, 75-yard drive to set the final score at 73-21.
Stat of the Game… Minnesota State accumulated 612 yards of total offense while holding Upper Iowa to 254 including 63 rushing yards.
Peacock Leaders… UIU's Reader threw for 191 yards, 3 interceptions and 3 scores, while Emsweller caught 4 passes for 110 yards and a score and Stevens grabbed 6 balls for 57 yards and a touchdown. Senior
Tyreec Washington recorded 12 tackles and 2.5 for loss, while
Michael Sparkman added 10 tackles.
Terrell Powell notched 8 stops, while
Charlie Caruso made 7 stops from his linebacker position.
