#12 Youngstown State Edges UNI, 14-10

Saturday, October 15

Youngstown, Ohio

6 p.m.

University of Northern Iowa

2-4 , 1-2

Youngstown State

5-1 , 3-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

UNI

Youngstown State

Photo by: Mike Dunlop

#12 Youngstown State Edges UNI, 14-10

10/15/2016 10:08:00 PM | Football

Box Score

By: Jordie Lindley

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The University of Northern Iowa football team held a 10-0 lead heading into the fourth quarter, but fell 14-10 after the No. 12 Youngstown State Penguins scored 14 unanswered points in the final 12 minutes. UNI's overall record fell to 2-4 and 1-2 in MVFC play.

UNI's defense played a strong first three quarters, but struggled to stop Youngstown State in the fourth, succumbing to a pair of touchdowns. The final score came when running back Martin Ruiz punched in a one-yard rush to put the Penguins up 14-10 with 28 seconds left on the clock.

Sophomore Eli Dunne got the Panthers to the YSU 44-yard-line on a 31-yard pass to Logan Cunningham with 16 seconds left to play, but was unsuccessful on a final attempt to the end zone.

Tyvis Smith led the Panther offense with 71 yards rushing on 11 carries, averaging a season-high 6.4 yards per carry. On defense, Elijah Campbell and A.J. Allen tied for the lead in tackles with nine, with Rickey Neal adding a career-high eight.

Despite having a rocky first quarter on offense, the UNI defense stole the show in the second, forcing three turnovers and allowing the Panthers to go on a 10-point swing in their favor.

Austin Errthum put the Panthers on the board first with a 27-yard field goal, ending a 38-yard drive. The field goal was set up by a forced fumble from Neal and a recovery from Campbell that put UNI on the YSU 48.

After the field goal, YSU took the field for its offensive drive and was immediately picked off by Duncan Ferch, who ran the interception 34 yards to the end zone to put UNI up 10-0 with 7:06 remaining in the second quarter.

Youngstown State scored the first offensive touchdown of the game to start the fourth quarter after neither team scored in the third. The drive, which lasted more than 11 minutes and featured 22 plays, ended on a one-yard rushing touchdown from Tevin McCaster, cutting UNI's lead to 10-7 with 11:47 left to play in the game.

The Penguins picked up momentum later in the fourth quarter, driving down field on the Panthers to the UNI 43-yard-line, but the Panther defense came up big again with its third interception of the game. Senior Jamison Whiting picked up his first pick of the season, returning the ball to the UNI 42-yard-line to give the Panthers possession with less than five minutes to play.

Unfortunately, the UNI defense couldn't stop the long drives that the Penguins kept producing with Youngstown State scoring on a 53-yard drive, ending with the touchdown by Ruiz for the win.

UNI returns to action when they host the Missouri State Bears in the UNI-Dome on Saturday, Oct. 22. The game will kick off at 1 p.m. CT for UNI's annual Family Weekend.

Post-Game Notes vs. Youngstown State

Captains against Youngstown State: #93 Karter Schult, #30 D'Shawn Dexter, #72 Robert Rathje and #15 Aaron Bailey.
UNI had three turnovers in the second quarter, including two interceptions. Duncan Ferch scored his second interception of the season while Malcolm Washington came away with his third interception of the season.
Duncan Ferch scored UNI's second defensive touchdown of the season and his first-career pick-six in the second quarter, putting UNI up 10-0. Malcolm Washington holds UNI's other defensive score, running back an interception against Southern Illinois.
UNI had career-high nights on defense, with both Elijah Campbell and Rickey Neal having standout performances. Campbell tied for the lead with a career-high nine tackles while Neal added eight, including three tackles for loss and a forced fumble.