Huskies hang on for 23-17 win over Wayne State

Saturday, October 6

St. Cloud, Minn.

1:00 p.m.

St. Cloud State

4-2 , 4-2

Wayne State College

1-5 , 1-5

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Wayne State (NE)

St. Cloud State

John Solberg and Anthony Carver celebrate Solberg's touchdown in the first quarter.

Photo by: Kylie Macziewski

10/6/2018 4:43:00 PM | Football

Box Score

ST. CLOUD, MINN. – It has been 1484 days since the St. Cloud State University football team defeated Wayne State College in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) play.

The 1485th day turned out to be day zero.

After nearly four full years, the Huskies were finally victorious over the Wildcats. St. Cloud State's offense came to life while the defense came with two big-time interceptions in the second half, allowing the Huskies to hold on for a 23-17 victory.

As indicative of the last meeting between these two teams, the matchup between St. Cloud State and Wayne State was certainly going to be one of the best of the season. Despite their 1-4 record, the Wildcats were one of the top defensive teams in the NSIC, while the Huskies were coming off a tough loss to Minnesota State the previous weekend. In fact, it looked like the visitors were ready to take an early lead as they managed to convert on a third-and-14 on their first possession to advance to the Huskies 45-yard line. The stalwart St. Cloud State defense kept them off the board, though, giving the offense the chance to score first in the game.

Unfortunately, things didn't quite work out that way. The Huskies went three-and-out on their first offensive possession and were forced to punt. The defense also wasn't nearly as lucky on Wayne State's second offensive possession. It seemed as though St. Cloud State had the Wildcats on the ropes after junior linebacker Graham Miller (Minneapolis, Minn. / Washburn) recorded a huge tackle for loss near the Huskies 35-yard line. However, a costly pass interference call against Stuart Hamann (Lakeville, Minn. / Lakeville North) put Wayne State inside the 10 for first and goal. After two strong holds against the run game, the Wildcats managed to penetrate the end zone to take a 7-0 lead over the Huskies.

St. Cloud State answered in the best way possible, with a touchdown of its own. After an impressive drive down the field, fueled by two Wayne State penalties and an eight-yard rush by Justin Czech (Chippewa Falls, Wis. / Chippewa Falls), the sophomore quarterback found who else by John Solberg (Cambridge, Minn. / Cambridge-Isanti) wide open at the 10. The wide receiver easily ran in to the end zone for the touchdown and Adam Stage (Appleton, Wis. / Kimberly) converted the point after attempt (PAT) to tie the game at 7-7.

The first quarter ended in the 7-7 draw thanks to more outstanding play from the Huskies defense. However, the second quarter was a bit crazier than the first. Still, St. Cloud State managed to overcome all the insanity and take a 14-7 lead late in the quarter. Czech found senior wide receiver John Pass (Elk Grove Village, Ill. / Elk Grove) wide open in the Wildcats end zone with 1:07 remaining in the quarter to extend the lead to 14-7.

Unfortunately, the Huskies were unable to extend their lead with their opening possession of the second half, as the stingy Wayne State defense forced a quick three-and-out. The Wildcats then stormed down the field to score a field goal, cutting St. Cloud State's lead to 14-10. However, the Huskies once against answered the call by scoring three points of their own, as Stage converted his eighth consecutive field goal to extend the lead to 17-10.

Of course, the Wildcats weren't down for the count, as they tied the game 17-17 at the tail end of the third quarter. In fact, Wayne State outscored St. Cloud State 10-3 in the third quarter, as Stage's 26-yard field goal accounted for the Huskies lone points of the quarter. However, Stage quickly regained the lead for St. Cloud State two minutes into the fourth, as he converted a 40-yarder to make it 20-17 in the Huskies favor.

It was up to St. Cloud State's defense to preserve the 20-17 lead, as Wayne State had multiple opportunities to tie or take a lead of its own in the final 12:53. However, the Huskies came up with several big plays, including a big stop on fourth-and-four to force a Wildcat turnover on downs. Payton Conrad (Tea, S.D. / Tea) also came up with a big-time interception with roughly two minutes remaining in the quarter to swing the momentum back in St. Cloud State's favor. The Huskies went on to score a field goal with 57 seconds, extending the lead to 23-17.

For a while, it looked like Stage's two late field goals wouldn't be enough to clinch the victory. A lateral play only third-and-long and a few fluke pass plays but Wayne State in Husky territory with 15 seconds remaining in regulation. However, St. Cloud State's defense managed to stay strong, and it seemed as though the Huskies came up with a huge play on third-and-seven when Jeremiah Makahununiu (Tea, S.D. / Tea) came up with a huge hit on the Wildcat quarterback to knock him off his balance, resulting in the incomplete pass. However, the refs indicated two seconds needed to be added on the clock, giving Wayne State one last opportunity to tie the game and win on a PAT.

Fortunately, the extra play didn't turn out to be fatal for St. Cloud State, as Ben Gutschow (Amherst, Wis. / Amherst) came up with a huge interception at the six-yard line to end the game and cement the victory for the Huskies.

Czech had a career day as the team's starting QB, finishing the game with 204 yards and two touchdowns after completing 14 of 29 passes. The majority of those went to Pass, who tallied a touchdown and 67 yards in the air, while Solberg ended the game as the team's leading receiver with one touchdown and 69 yards on four targets.

Gregory Lewis (Milwaukee, Wis. / Wauwatosa West) just missed his second-consecutive 100-yard game, as he finished as the team's leading rusher with 93 net yards.

Defensively, the team was led in tackles by Parker Buckley (Rice Lake, Wis. / Rice Lake), who ended the day with 10 tackles, six of which were solo. Jack Horter (Sussex, Wis. / Marquette) tallied eight solo tackles on the day, while Ferris Ingraham (Evanston, Ill. / Evanston) recorded seven tackles and one sack for a loss of 2.5 yards.

With the win, the Huskies improve to 4-2 on the year and are 4-2 in NSIC play. St. Cloud State will return to action on Saturday, October 13 when team travels to Sioux Falls, South Dakota to take on (RV) the University of Sioux Falls. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.