VALLEY CITY, N.D. – Another Ag Bowl is in the books and with comes another Vikings victory. Valley City State held Augsburg to 63 total yards and five first downs on the way to a 27-0 win over the Auggies in the 7^th annual Ag Bowl, presented by First Community Credit Union. This was the Vikings sixth win in seven Ag Bowls.


To say Valley City State dominated the game would be an understatement. Augsburg had just eleven yards rushing to the Vikings 235. Augsburg had 52 yards passing to the Vikings 108. The Auggies averaged less than two yards per play.

The Vikings got on the board first on their second drive of the game. Joey Cave was responsible for 52 of the 54 yards on the drive. He had 18 yards rushing and completed two passes for 34 yards. The last 28 came on a touchdown pass to Will Pfahl. Cave hit Pfahl over the middle at the five-yard line, and Pfahl took it in for the touchdown. Walker Brondos added the extra point, capping a five play, 54-yard drive with 5:08 left to go in the first quarter.

The Vikings, on their first possession of the second quarter, put together an impressive drive that cover 75 yards on 18 plays and took nearly eight minutes off the clock. Marty Gohn took it in from two yards out to cap the drive. The extra point was no good, making the score 13-0 VCSU with 3:33 to go in the second quarter.

On the ensuing kickoff, Brondos pooched his kick, it took a VCSU bounce towards oncoming Vikings and Joey Antonutti fell on the loose ball to give Valley City State possession at the Augsburg 35.
Seven plays later, Cave took it from a yard out. The two-point conversion failed to make the score 19-0 VCSU with 32.8 seconds to go in the first half.

In the third quarter, Valley City State got on the board late in the quarter. Augsburg went three and out on their second possession of the quarter. The Vikings took over on their own 33 and marched 67 yards on nine plays. Nick Mears took the snap and scored from four yards away. Mears tried to run in the two-point conversion but came up short, making the score 25-0 Vikings with 1:27 to go in the third quarter.

The final score of the game came by way of the Viking special teams. With Augsburg punter Nathan Wangensteen lined up in the back of the end zone, Fafo Lefano broke through and blocked the punt. The ball went out of the back of the end zone for a safety. With 57 seconds to go in the third quarter, the Vikings led 27-0.

There was no scoring in the fourth quarter which was owned by the Vikings. Augsburg had one drive in the quarter, and it lasted just 1:36.

Individually, Joey Cave led a balanced running game with 82 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown. Devyne Pearson rushed for 71 yards on 13 carries. Marty Gohn had 40 yards on 13 carries and a score. Owen Quail had 36 yards on eight carries.

Cave was eleven of 13 passing for 108 yards and a touchdown. Exavian Westbrook caught four passes for 32 yards. Nick Mears had two catches for 30 yards and Will Pfahl had the one catch for 28 yards and a touchdown.

The defense was led by Gavin Gerhardt and Aiden Russell who had four total tackles each. Russell had ½ sack and ½ tackle for a loss. TaQuez Chatman had a half sack and Brody O'Keefe had one sack.
With the win, VCSU heads into its bye week with a 1-1 record.

A big thank you to First Community Credit Union who has been the main sponsor of the Ag Bowl since its inception in 2018! Despite the wind and rain, it was a great night to be a Viking!

UP NEXT: Valley City State is on the road to La Grande, Oregon to take on Eastern Oregon. Kickoff is set for 3:00 p.m. Central Time.