Sept. 17, 2005

Final Stats

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - Western Washington University suffered its third straight loss, falling to nationally ranked University of North Dakota, 47-7, in a non-conference football game Saturday before a crowd of 10,681 in the 40th annual Potato Bowl game at the Alerus Center.

Western fell to 1-3 with its third consecutive loss, all against nationally ranked teams. It was the most lopsided loss for the Vikings since a 49-0 setback to Pacific Lutheran in 1986.

North Dakota, ranked No.4 in the American Football Coaches Association/NCAA Division II Top 25, improved to 4-0. Quarterback Chris Belmore completed 12-of-15 passes for 175 yards and four touchdowns, two each to Weston Dressler and Dan Grossman, while playing just a little more than a half.

The Fighting Sioux had a 514-208 edge in total offense and did not have a turnover, while Western had four turnovers.

"North Dakota was everything we expected," said Western head coach Rob Smith. "It was a good old-fashioned fanny kicking."

"It's frustrating because I'm not sure we were even competitive today in some aspects, and that's disappointing. We've played Montana, Portland State, UC Davis, and one thing we always took pride in is that you may not win but you were always competitive. But today we were not, at least not up to my expectations."

North Dakota was forced to punt on its opening series, then scored on its next five possessions, reaching the scoreboard just over nine minutes into the first quarter on a 52-yard field goal by Jeff Glas. The Fighting Sioux extended the lead to 10-0 in the final minute of the first quarter when Belmore hit Dressler on a curl route, and Dressler sprinted up the middle of the field for a 55-yard touchdown.

North Dakota then added to the lead with three scores in the second quarter, as Grossman caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from Belmore to cap an eight-play, 53-yard drive; Glas connected on a 48-yard field goal that bounced in off the crossbar; and Dressler scored on a 3-yard pass from Belmore in the final minute of the half, giving the Fighting Sioux a 27-0 lead at halftime.

In the opening half, North Dakota had a 266-98 edge, and the Vikings did not have a play from scrimmage longer than 12 yards.

Western's defense held on the opening possession of the second half, and a short punt gave the Vikings the ball in North Dakota territory, but Western quarterback James Monrean (Jr., Bellingham/Sehome) was intercepted on the next play by Digger Anderson, and one play after that, the Fighting Sioux put the game completely out of reach as Belmore hit Grossman on a post pattern for a 57-yard touchdown.

The Fighting Sioux extended the margin to 41-0 on a 2-yard run by Chris Beatty, who rushed for 121 yards on 19 carries, before Western scored midway through the third quarter. Running back Jake Carlyle (Sr., Olympia/Capital) scored on 1-yard run on fourth down, a play set up by a 51-yard pass from Monrean to slotback Brett Upchurch (So., Sammamish/Eastlake).

Glas then completed the scoring with a 26-yard field goal late in the third quarter and a 29-yard three-pointer in the fourth period.

"The bye week comes at a perfect time," Smith said. "No team in the country has traveled more or spent more time on the road than us. But I'm not going to make excuses, we got our butts kicked and we've got to regroup."

"We'll call on the pride these kids have. We will find an answer and get things back on track. "We have a job to do, it won't be easy but we'll get it done - that's to get everybody back on their feet and get refocused and be ready for conference play."

The Vikings were without preseason All-America wide receiver Andy Olson and running back Duncan Sherrard, Western's leading rusher each of the last three seasons, because of injuries.

The three-game losing streak is just one short of the worst Viking skid of the Smith era, which began in 1989. The Vikings lost the first three games of the 2003 season after dropping the final game in 2002.

Western has a bye next week before opening Great Northwest Athletic Conference play on Saturday, Oct. 1 (6 p.m.) against Humboldt State University at Bellingham's Civic Stadium.

SCORING SUMMARYWestern Washington   0   0   7  0 ---  7North Dakota        10  17  17  3 --- 47
UND - FG Glas 52UND - Dressler 55 pass from Belmore (Glas kick)UND - Grossman 5 pass from Belmore (Glas kick)UND - FG Glas 48UND - Dressler 3 pass from Belmore (Glas kick)UND - Grossman 57 pass from Belmore (Glas kick)UND - Beatty 2 run (Glas kick)WWU - Carlyle 1 run (Younggren kick)UND - FG Glas 26UND - FG Glas 29Attendance: 10,681