Nov. 10, 2007

Final Stats

BELLINGHAM, Wash. - Quarterback Ben King threw four second-quarter touchdown passes, leading Minnesota State University to a 48-24 victory over Western Washington University on Saturday at Civic Stadium in the final football game in the 87-year history of the North Central Conference.

Western, which suffered its fifth straight loss, completed its season 2-8 overall and 1-7 in the NCC. It is the first five-game losing streak since 1986 for the Vikings, who suffered their first eight-loss season since going 1-9 in 1983.

Minnesota State completed its season 5-6 overall and 3-5 in the NCC, and snapped a three-game losing streak.

King completed 40-of-54 passes for 429 yards and five touchdowns and was intercepted once. It was his fifth 400-yard passing performance of the season and the seventh of his career.

Western running back Craig Garner (So., Tacoma/Lakes) rushed for 166 yards and a touchdown on 29 carries and also had a touchdown reception. He finished the season with 989 rushing yards, the most for a Viking since 1996.

Western, which was without regular starting quarterback Adam Perry (Jr., Longview/R.A. Long) because of a shoulder injury, had not scored in the first quarter of its last six games, but put 14 points on the board in the first 10 minutes.

First, the Vikings moved 84 yards in 11 plays, capped by a 19-yard pass from backup quarterback Tony Gardiner (Jr., Bothell) to Garner. Then on Minnesota State's opening drive, on a fourth-and-two play, quarterback Ben King's option pitch went behind the running back, and Western defensive end Ryan Conwell (Sr., Kent/Kentwood) picked up the loose ball and ran 70 yards to give the Vikings a 14-0 lead.

Minnesota State responded just 50 seconds later, with King throwing to Donte Shackelford at the goal line for a 33-yard touchdown.

The Mavericks then tied the game early in the second quarter as King connected with tight end Jeff Fielder for a 25-yard score.

King went on to throw three more touchdowns in the period, hitting Chris Nowlin for scores of 61 and 40 yards, and Fielder on a 2-yard pass with 31 seconds left in the half that gave the Mavericks a 35-17 halftime advantage.

Minnesota State extended the lead to 38-17 on a 24-yard field goal by Jason Tompkins early in the third quarter.

Western closed the margin to 14 points, 38-24, scoring on a 1-yard run by Garner that was set up by a blocked punt by Maurice Jones (Jr., Tacoma/Spanaway Lake). The Vikings seemed ready to get the ball back again, but a fumbled punt return allowed the Mavericks to maintain possesson, leading to a 45-yard field goal by Tompkins.

On the following series, Gardiner was intercepted by Mike Hinton, who returned the ball 44 yards for a touchdown, providing the final margin. It was the final game for 11 Western seniors, including linebacker Shane Simmons (Kent/Kentlake), who took his NCC-leading tackle total to 125 with 12 stops. He entered the game ranked third nationally in tackles with a 12.6 average.

King completed his career with an NCC-record 11,035 yards passing, which is tied for sixth in NCAA Division II history. He threw for 4,096 yards this season, and entered the game as the leading NCAA II passer, averaging 366.7 yards per game.

The NCC, which was founded in 1921, will dissolve following the current academic year. Western completed its two years as a football-only NCC member with a 4-12 conference record.

SCORING SUMMARY

Minnesota State      7    28    3    10 --- 48
Western Washington  14     3    0     7 --- 24

WWU - Garner 19 pass from Gardiner (Younggren kick)
WWU - Conwell 70 fumble recovery (Younggren kick)
MSU - Shackelford 33 pass from King (Tompkins kick)
MSU - Fielder 25 pass from King (Tompkins kick)
MSU - Nowlin 61 pass from King (Tompkins kick)
WWU - FG Younggren 42
MSU - Nowlin 40 pass from King (Tompkins kick)
MSU - Fielder 2 pass from King (Tompkins kick)
MSU - FG Tompkins 24
WWU - Garner 1 run (Younggren kick)
MSU - FG Tompkins 45
MSU - Hinton 44 interception return (Tompkins kick)

Attendance: 1,511