BEMIDJI, Minn. – Bemidji State University football took down nationally ranked foe No. 15/10 Augustana University 17-10 Saturday afternoon at Chet Anderson Stadium. Two touchdowns plus stellar kicking from specialist Connor Mantelli earned the Beaver win and kept Bemidji State's playoff hopes alive. 
 
A scoreless first quarter kept things interesting for both teams. Just under midway through the second quarter, Drayton Lehman and Sam McGath combined to give the Beavers the first points of the day. A 22-yard reception off a pass from McGath sent Lehman straight to the endzone, ending a drive lasting over five minutes with 13 plays and spanning 71 yards. A common site recently, a good PAT kick from Connor Mantelli improved the Beavers to 7-0. The Beavers wouldn't hold this lead as Augustana's Jake Pecina landed a 38-yard field goal as the clock expired for the half. 
 
The third quarter gave the Vikings hope as they took the lead 10-7 with just 4:50 remaining in the frame. The Beavers wouldn't settle for this and would grab 10 points of their own in the final frame. Just three minutes into the quarter Connor Mantelli landed his career longest field goal at 47 yards, the longest by a BSU kicker since Isaac Aanerud grabbed a 50-yard kick in 2017. Sam McGath added onto this and gave the Beavers a lead with 4:31 remaining and that is where the score would stand the rest of the game.
 
Sam McGath went 10-19-1 this afternoon with 114 passing yards and one touchdown. He also dominated the Beavers' run game, grabbing 64 net yards on 18 rushing attempts and tallied the game-winning touchdown. Jayden Washington sat just behind McGath with 62 rushing yards on 13 attempts. Brice Peters led the receiving game with two receptions for 60 yards total. Peters is now just 15 yards shy of hitting 1,000 receiving yards this season. Drayton Lehman ended with six receptions for 55 yards and one touchdown.
 
Defensively, Colton Hinrichs and Marco Cavallaro led the charge with seven tackles each. Savon Cameron marked the team high in solo tackles with five of his own and Cavallaro's helpers on six earned him that top spot. The Beavers marked nine tackles for a loss with 21 total TFL yards. Cade Barrett grabbed 2.5 of those tackles for eight yards. He also marked the Beavers' lone sack, a strip sack putting Augustana back four yards. 
 
Once again, Connor Mantelli excelled on special teams for BSU, marking a 100 percent kicking percentage with two PATs and a 47-yard field goal. Landon Arends also gave the Beavers a strong push on kickoffs, marking four for 238 total yards, a long of 59.5 yards. 
 
The Beavers' post-season fate lies in the hands of Super Region Four opponents as they find out if they make the NCAA Division II Football Playoffs tomorrow. The selection show is set for 5 p.m. CST and a live stream will be available on NCAA.com. Playoffs begin on Nov. 23 at school sites, leading up to the big show, the 2024 NCAA Division II Football National Championship on Saturday, Dec. 21 in McKinney, Tex. For those that aren't able to watch the selection show, follow along on the BSU Beavers Football X and Instagram accounts for live updates.
 
For more information on the Bemidji State Football program, tickets or schedules, visit BSUBeavers.com, follow the Beavers on X (@BSUBeaversFB), like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers) and like them on Instagram (@BSUBeaversFB).
 
Located on the shore of Lake Bemidji, Bemidji State University sponsors 15 varsity athletic programs with NCAA Division I men's and women's hockey membership in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association and Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while its 13 NCAA Division II programs hold membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).