Dakota State Falls in Battle for the Chamber of Commerce Traveling Trophy to Dakota Wesleyan
The Dakota State Trojans six game winning streak vs Dakota Wesleyan in the battle for the Chamber of Commerce Traveling Trophy came to an end Saturday night. Trojans fell to the Tigers 23-13 at Joe Quintal Field in Mitchell, SD.
It was all Tigers in the opening quarter as they fired on all cylinders and came away with three touchdowns and a 21-0 start. Their offense was clicking early and it came more so through the air than anything on the ground.
Star running back for the Tigers, Jamin Arend was limited all night by the Trojans finishing with 26 carries on 73 yards (2.8 yards per carry) and one rushing TD. Quarterback Austin Lee was 14-for-23 passing with two TD’s passing and one interception. His favorite target that helped them set the tone for the game was Cole Holden. He finished with three receptions for 88 yards – one being a 72-yarder on the second drive of the game.
The TD by Holden was one of the two tide-turning moments in the game. The other being a recovered punt that bounced off the back of a Trojan blocker and led to a safety.
Signs of Life
QB Adin Jungers didn’t look bad in his first start of the season for Dakota State. When he wasn’t running for his life, he made some beautiful passes and gave his team a boost on numerous occasions. Jungers finished 21-for-38 passing for 236 yards and two interceptions, his first INT’s as a Trojan. The lone passing TD came from Austin Lake who tossed a nice pass on a trick play to Nathan Cook for his only reception that went 32 yards.
The guy catching most of those passes and leading all receivers, along with being clutch for the Trojans, was Cole Sylliassen. He came away with nine receptions on 91 yards receiving.
The Trojans got some life in the second quarter by opening it with a touchdown drive and getting on the board. After the opening offensive burst by DWU, the Trojans didn’t allow an offensive score the rest of the game. Though the flashes of beauty from the offense couldn’t sustain consistently enough to come away with more scores. Credit to DWU for putting the pressure on Jungers and playing solid defense.
The Trojan run defense was strong in the outing. Limiting DWU to 2.3 ypc and giving up just 76 total rushing yards. Expect this to be a consistent theme moving forward for Dakota State.
Next Game
DSU will host Wisconsin-La Crosse on Thursday, Aug. 31 for the 8th Annual AG Bowl. Kickoff set for 7pm with pregame starting at 6:30pm on Jammin Country 103.
