14th BATTLE FOR THE PADDLE SET FOR SATURDAY
The 14th annual Battle for the Paddle between the University of Mary and the MSU Moorhead Dragons takes place this Saturday, Sept. 28. Kickoff between the Marauders and the Dragons is set for 1:05 pm at Scheels Field on the MSUM campus, in Moorhead, MN. 

THE RECORDS/LAST WEEK
The Marauders (0-3 overall/NSIC | 0-3 NSIC North) lost 34-29 to Minot State University... MSU Moorhead Dragons (2-1 overall/NSIC | 2-1 NSIC North) defeated Northern State University 24-17.

PADDLE TROPHY
The first-ever gridiron match-up between the University of Mary and Minnesota State University Moorhead took on a little extra edge in 2006 as both schools battled for The Paddle Trophy in this "River Rivalry" game. UMary is located on the Missouri River and MSU Moorhead is on the Red River. Both are Northern Sun North Division rivals... The Paddle Trophy was developed by the student governments of the two colleges. The team that wins each year is responsible for the safekeeping and delivery of the Paddle Trophy and its case to each game between the Marauders and Dragons. The home team's student body representative will award the Paddle Trophy, which has each school's logo on opposite sides of the blade, with the score of each game being added to the winning team's side after the game... UMary won the first seven paddle games, grabbing initial possession with a 21-20 win in Bismarck in 2006. Marauders linebacker Brian Finnegan preserved the initial UMary win when he deflected a Dragons pass on a two-point conversion attempt with 1:08 remaining in the game. MSUM captured the paddle in 2013 for the first time with a 48-41 win. 

TWO TRAVELING TROPHIES
The Marauders play two games annually for travelling trophies. Combined the Marauders are 10-10 in trophy games. The Marauders are 8-5 in the "Battle for the Paddle" with MSU Moorhead and 2-5 in the "Battle for the Big Lake" against Minot State. 

MIDCO BROADCASTING MARAUDERS-DRAGONS SATURDAY'S BATTLE FOR THE PADDLE
The University of Mary game at MSU Moorhead on Saturday, Sept. 28, is this week's Midco Sports Network's Northern Sun Game of the Week. The Marauders-Dragons matchup will be aired throughout the region on MidcoSN. To find MidcoSN on your cable system, visit www.midcosn.com/schedule/channel-finder/

TV TIME
The University of Mary football games will be televised live throughout the state and region five times this season:
Sept. 5            Marauders vs. St. Cloud State         6 p.m.         BEK Sports
Sept. 12        Marauders at Bemidji State                7 p.m.        Midco Sports Network
Sept. 21        Marauders vs. Minot State                    6 p.m.        The Dakota's CW
Sept. 28        Marauders at MSU Moorhead        1 p.m.        Midco Sports Network
Oct. 26            Marauders vs. Wayne State                 2 p.m.        BEK Sports

BALANCE 
The Marauders posted 467 yards of offense against the Beavers, including 258 yards rushing and 209 yards passing. The total offense was the most for UMary since generating 524 yards against St. Cloud State in the final game of the 2014 season... This was the first time since Sept. 12, 2011, the Marauders had both 200 yards rushing and 200 yards passing. On that date the Marauders ran for 222 yards and passed for 232 in a 39-36 loss at Northern State. 

ALL-AROUND AWESOME DAY FOR KITTNER
UMary soph. WR Danny Kittner had an amazing performance against Minot State University as he narrowly missed setting a Marauders NCAA era (starting in 2006) record for all-purpose yardage in a single game. Kittner accumulated an impressive 259 yards against the Beavers. He caught five passes for 136 yards and a touchdown, returned five kickoffs for 107 yards and ran the ball twice for 16 yards. Posting several explosive plays, he caught a 46 yard touchdown pass, caught another ball for a 48 yard gain, and had a 43 yard kickoff return... Kittner leads the Northern Sun in all-purpose yardage at 165 yards/game and is fourth in NCAA Division II... Kittner is third in the NSIC in receiving yards/game (86) and fourth in receptions/game (5.3)... For the year Kittner has 16 catches for 227 yards and a touchdown and is averaging 20.7 yards per kick return...DeShawn Gay has the program's NCAA era mark with 263 all-purpose yards against Southwest Minnesota State in 2018 with Bayland Rippenkroeger second at 262 yards against Winona State in 2007. 

NELSON PROVES COMBO THREAT WITH ARM, LEGS
Junior QB Logan Nelson was a threat with his arm and legs against the Beavers. Nelson ran for three touchdowns and 149 yards on 12 carries and passed for 179 yards and a touchdown in the Battle for the Big Lake. The Billings, MT, native became the first UMary player to run for over 100 yards and pass for over 170 in the same game in the school's NCAA era (starting in 2006). He scored on touchdown runs of 55, 62 and 15 yards and hit Danny Kittner for a 46 yard scoring strike... Nelson's three rushing touchdowns ties the NCAA era record mark last posted by Josh Murray in 2011... The 62 yard run by Nelson is the team's longest since Adam Woroniecki sprinted 67 yards against Wayne State in 2015... Nelson totaled 328 yards of offense, last exceeded by Zach Roberson's total of 402 yards against Minnesota Duluth on Nov. 8, 2014... Nelson's effort earned him special mention in the NSIC Offensive Player of the Week recognition... His 149 yards rushing is the second-best performance in the NSIC this season.

BUSY MEN
Sr. LB Paul Guptill made a career-high 13 tackles against Minot State, including 2.5 for loss. The former Marauders fullback is fourth in the NSIC in tackles per game with 9.0... Several Marauders are among the NSIC leaders in tackles per game. DB Richard Bendish ranks 6th (8.7), Jr. LB Dylan Anthony is 8th (7.7), Sr. DL Cyrano Rafield is 13th (7.0), St. LB Grady Blewett is 16th (6.7) and Jr. DB Dre Jackson is 25th (6.0). 

BEHIND ENEMY LINES
The Marauders made 10 tackles for loss against the Beavers. Senior linebackers Paul Guptill and Grady Blewett both had 2.5 tackles behind the line. Cyrano Rayfield and Dre Jackson each had two and Isaiah Hubbard one. Blewett and Rayfield combined for the first points of the game when they tackled the Mint State ballcarrier for a 3-yard loss in the end zone for a safety. 

DOWNTOWN
UMary has shown big strike power in all aspects of the game this year. Logan Nelson has two of the five longest runs from scrimmage this year, running 62 and 55 yards for scores... Three of the 11 longest kickoff returns are owned by Danny Kittner (45 and 43 yards) and Marquell Evans (36)... Five of the 26 longest passing plays belong to the Marauders: Kade Lynch (56 yard TD), Danny Kittner (48 yards and 46 yard TD) and Leonardo Vecchi (40 yard TD, 39 yards). All five passes were thrown by Logan Nelson. 

FIVE + 1 NUMBERS TO KNOW
165 Danny Kittner ranks 1st in the NSIC in all purpose yards at 165 yards per game (includes rushing, receiving and return yards)

32 This is the 32nd  season of Marauders football. After playing a junior varsity schedule in 1987, head coach Jim Driscoll led the 1988 squad to a 27-18 home win in the program's first varsity game. 

27    Bailey Meyer ranks 27th in the nation in punting with an average of 41.3 yards/attempt. The Marauders are 12th in net punting (40.4 yards/punt).

14 This is the Marauders 14th season competing in NCAA Division II.

7 The Marauders offense owns seven plays of 39 or more yards 

4 Logan Nelson is second in the NSIC in touchdowns scored with four and 4th in points scored with 24

HEAD COACHES
In his second season as UMary head coach Craig Bagnell was the youngest head coach in the NCAA in 2018 at age 28. The 2013 University of Mary graduate started his coaching career at Bemidji State in 2014 as a graduate assistant working with receivers. The next season he moved to offensive coordinator where he led a potent Beavers attack the last three years that featured creativity, balance and big plays. A four-year starter at quarterback for the Marauders, Bagnell was a two-time all-conference selection and UMary's all-time career leader in touchdown passes (75) and passing yardage (9,170). He was named head coach at his alma mater in Dec. 2017... The 2018 NSIC Coach of the Year after leading the Dragons to a record of 8-4 and the team's first Mineral Water Bowl appearance, Steve Laqua became the 17th head coach in the 94-year history of Dragons football prior to the 2011 season. A native of Cavalier, N.D., and a 2000 graduate of North Dakota State University, Laqua is in his 9th season directing the MSUM program and has a record of 39-53. After graduating from NDSU, he was a graduate assistant coach for the Bison before working at St. Olaf and the University of Minnesota Crookston. Laqua returned to NDSU for two seasons before winning two state titles as head coach at Fargo Shanley High School.

YEAR IN YEAR OUT
This is the 14th straight season the Marauders have played the Dragons. MSUM is one of five teams UMary has faced every season since beginning NCAA play in 2006. Bemidji State, Minnesota Crookston, Northern State and St. Cloud State are the other four teams. 

THE MARAUDERS-DRAGONS SERIES HISTORY: 2006: The Marauders and Dragons first met in the inaugural Paddle Trophy game with Mary pulling out a 21-20 win despite throwing five interceptions, including a string of four in four pass attempts. Justin Fleck ran for 96 yards and two touchdowns and Matt Wall had seven catches for 140 yards and a score. MSUM scored with 1:08 left in the game but went for a two point conversion and the win. Brian Finnegan tipped the pass in the end zone to preserve the lead and the Mary victory... 2007: Bayland Rippenkroger and Erik Kruse both scored two touchdowns in a 45-31 Mary road win... 2008: Jamal Lomax scored his second touchdown of the day in overtime and Phil Thomas secured a 24-17 Marauders win when he knocked down a Dragons fourth down pass attempt on the final play of the game... 2009: Cameron Gatling ran for 184 yards and caught two scoring passes in a 39-13 Marauders road win. Mary outgained MSUM 379-250, including a 258-46 edge in rushing. The Marauders forced six turnovers and committed one... 2010: Craig Bagnell passed for two TDs and Jamal Lomax ran for 169 yards and two TDs in a 43-17 Marauders win. John Oyloe has two of UM's four sacks. The Marauders had a 194-40 edge in rushing... 2011: Tyler Steffan tied his school record with four TD receptions and the Marauders set a school record with 683 yards of offense in a 52-13 win. Steffan caught nine passes for 123 yards. Josh Murray ran for 216 yards on 16 carries and scored three TDs, all in the 3rd quarter, and Evan Gross ran for 107. Bagnell was 24-of-35 for 319 and four TDs... 2012: Bagnell threw for 189 yards and a TD and the Marauders defense limited the Dragons to 225 yards in a 23-7 Mary home win. Dariouse Gravely scored two TDs and Tyler Steffan had four catches for 80 yards. Grant Singer posted 3.5 tackles for loss and John Oyloe had 3.0, including two sacks...  2013: Mary lost the Paddle Trophy for the first time in a 48-41 road loss. Down 27 points in the 1st half, the Marauders rallied for a 41-41 tie in the 4th quarter. MSUM won the game on the next possession when backup QB Ryan Toelle hit Adam Jiskra for a 39 yard TD catch. MSUM outgained Mary 582-522. Bagnell was 34-of-57 for 399 yards, 5 TDs and one INT. Nick Jolliffe caught 12 passes for 148 yards and two TDs. Jiskra posted a line of 7-131-2 and Cory Ambrose was at 7-136-1. Jake Hodge was 15-of-25 for 301 and three TDs. He also ran for two TDs. Grant Singer posted 15 tackles for Mary... 2014 Zach Roberson completed 27-of-45 passes for 460 yards and a school record-tying six touchdowns plus ran for a TD in a 52-45 Mary home win. Roberson earned NSIC Offensive Player of the Week honors for his efforts. Dragons QB Demetrius Carr ran for 208 yards and passed for 188 and rallied MSUM from a 44-17 deficit to a 45-44 lead. Roberson hit Elby Pope for a 45-yard TD to win the game with 4:26 remaining. Pope caught 11-169-2. Jake East went 7-93-2 and Myron Baldoz-McArn was 4-87-1. Troy Guptill had 2.0 sacks - both on MSUM's final drive of the game - and 4.0 TFL. Preston Tescher added 12 tackles. The squads combined for 1,095 yards of offense... 2015 MSUM's Kayne Griffith bolted 72 yards for a TD on the third play of the game and Preston Prince dashed 62 yards for the score on the first play of the next Dragons possession in a 37-0 MSUM home win. Caleb Buck passed for 128 yards for the Marauders and Preston Tescher made a career-high 17 tackles... 2016: Brothers Zack and Connor Graves each scored a touchdown for the Marauders in a 47-16 home loss to the Dragons. Nick McCann completed 11-of-15 passes for 128 yards and a TD. Dragons QB Demetrius Car ran for 143 yards and two TDs and passed for 166 yards and a TD. Gibson caught 10 passses for 131 yards and a TD... 2017: FR WR Luke Little and Anthony Shepherd both caught touchdowns and UMary ran for 270 yards in a 51-19 loss at MSU Moorhead. QB Garrett Weissinger ran for 92 yards a TD for UMary. Nick McCann threw the scoring pass to Shepherd and Colton Farmer connected with Little for a touchdown. Jakup Siani ran for 94 yds and 2 TDs and passed for 205 yards and a score for MSUM... 2018: Bryan Lumsden ran for 81 yards and two TDs and Chase Kopp caught a 59 yard touchdown from Garrett Wessinger for the Marauders in a 48-20 home loss. Siani threw for three TDS and ran for two for MSUM. 

PAST MARAUDERS-DRAGONS MEETINGS (Mary leads 8-4)
2006     Mary 21             MSUM 20             Bismarck, ND
2007     Mary 42             MSUM 31             Moorhead, MN
2008     Mary 24             MSUM 17 OT     Bismarck, ND
2009     Mary 39             MSUM 13             Moorhead, MN
2010     Mary 43             MSUM 17             Bismarck, ND
2011     Mary 52             MSUM 13             Moorhead, MN
2012     Mary 23             MSUM 7             Bismarck, ND
2013    MSUM 48        Mary 41                Moorhead, MN 
2014    Mary 52            MSUM 45            Bismarck, ND
2015    MSUM 37        Mary 0                Moorhead, MN 
2016    MSUM 47        Mary 16                Bismarck, ND
2017    MSUM 51        Mary 19                Moorhead, MN
2018    MSUM 48        Mary 20                Bismarck, ND

QUICK LOOK AT THE MSU MOORHEAD BEAVERS
Coming off their first trip to the Mineral Water Bowl and an 8-4 record last season, the Dragons are off to a 2-1 start. After opening with a 44-20 road win at Minnesota Crookston, the Dragons dropped a 48-20 home loss to #13 Minnesota Duluth. Last week MSUM picked up a 24-17 win at Northern State on a touchdown catch by Jr. WR Grady Bresnahan with 16 seconds left in the game. JR QB Jakup Sinani has thrown for 545 yards and four TDs in two games and completes 63.9 percent of his passes while throwing just one interception. Bresnahan has 25 catches for 308 yards and a score. MSUM is scoring 29.3 points per game and recording 316.3 yards per game of total offense. Hunter Sall leads the defense with 18 tackles and has a team-best five tackles for loss. Jr. DE Darius Woods-Steichen has two sacks whileJR S Shad Vedaa has 16 tackles and a team-best two forced fumbles. MSUM allows 28.3 yards per game and 404.7 yards per game of total offense.

LAST TIME OUT
UMary quarterback Logan Nelson became the first Marauders player to run for over 100 yards and pass for more than 160 yards in the same game since the Marauders began competing in NCAA Division II and the Northern Sun in 2006. The junior accounted for 325 yards of offense and four touchdowns in a wild 34-29 loss to Minot State University in the Battle for the Big Lake. Nelson had an impressive night both running and passing. The junior ran for 149 and three touchdowns and passed for 179 yards and a score to lead the Marauders to their best offensive yardage output in nearly five years with 467 yards of offense. Three of Nelson's four touchdowns were big strikes and he ran for scores covering 55, 62 and 15 yards while connecting with Danny Kittner on a 46 yard touchdown pass...The scoring opened for UMary on a safety when Cyrano Rayfield and Grady Blewett tackled Ali Mohamed in the end zone for a 3 yard loss. Two plays after the subsequent kickoff, Nelson busted 55 yards down the left sideline for his first touchdown of the night, giving the Marauders a 9-0 lead... Following another defensive stop, Nelson and Kittner collaborated on a 46 yard touchdown for a 15-0 lead. Nelson added a 62 yard TD run in the second and UMary led 22-14 at halftime... A 15 yard scoring run by Nelson on the opening drive of the second half increased the Marauders lead to 29-14. The Beavers soon found the consistency they were searching for, sandwiching two touchdowns around a field goal to take a 31-29 lead entering the final quarter of play and later added a field goal in the final quarter... Kittner set a career-high with 137 yards receiving on five catches, including one for a score and returned five kicks for 107 yards. Leonardo Vecchi had three catches for 31 yards. Bryan Lumsden ran for 68 yards and Sebastian Franck-Love added 39 rushing yards as UMary outgained Minot State 250 to 185 on the ground. Defensively the Marauders had ten tackles behind the line. Paul Guptill made a career-high 13 tackles that included 2.5 tackles for loss. Including the safety, Rayfield had 2.0 tackles for loss and 10 tackles. Blewett, who teamed with Rayfield for the safety, had 2.5 tackles for loss and nine tackles. Dre Jackson also had 2.0 tackles for loss to go with eight total tackles and one pass breakup... Minot State, which generated 430 yards of offense, was paced by Mohammed in rushing as he ran for 85 yards and a score. Ben Bolinske completed 19-of-27 passes for 245 yards and three touchdowns while tacking on 35 yards rushing. Lavante Bushnell caught seven passes for 109 yards and a touchdown. Defensively Isaiah Bigby had an interception and a tackle for loss.
  
13     
The Marauders have had 13 players make their first starts for UMary this season. Starting for the first time in the opener against the Huskies was WR Leonardo Vecchi, OL Dylan Thomsen, QB Logan Nelson, DL Anthony Zuniga and Devin Sardelli, LB Paul Guptill and DBs Daquavian Ross and Richard Bendish. In week two, WR Kade Lynch, DL Taylor Morrison and DB Dre Jackson had their first UMary starts at Bemidji State. In week three freshman offensive linemen Drake Lalim and Conner Paul were in the starting lineup.   

BOOM TOWN
All-NSIC punter Bailey Meyer is having another strong season. He ranks 27th in the nation with an average of 41.3 yards/attempt. Among his 23 punts, seven balls have been pinned inside the 20 and six have resulted in a fair catch. His season long is 50 yards. Meyer is the Marauders career punting leader with an average of 39.3 yards/kick and also holds records for singe season average (41.8 in 2018), single season attempts (77 in 2018) and career attempts (211).

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