North Dakota
Missouri State football gets reality check in blowout loss at North Dakota State
Missouri State football’s hopes of winning a share of the Missouri Valley Football Conference on Saturday quickly disappeared as the Bears didn’t put up much of a fight against the No. 1 team in the Football Championship Subdivision.
FCS No. 14 Missouri State (8-3, 6-1 MVFC) didn’t stand a chance in a 59-21 loss to FCS No. 1 North Dakota State (10-1, 7-0 MVFC) at the FargoDome in Fargo, North Dakota.
The Bears were dominated along the offensive and defensive fronts against the nine-time FCS champions. The Bison scored early and often, taking a 21-0 lead at the end of the first quarter and keeping their foot on the gas throughout.
The loss will be a measuring stick for Missouri State as it departs the FCS to become an FBS program in Conference USA next season. NDSU would rank among the better Group of 5 teams as a well-established winning program the Bears hope to build toward. It’s clear they have a long way to go.
Missouri State has an outside chance at still winning a share of the MVFC. The Bears would have to beat FCS No. 3 South Dakota State (9-2, 6-1 MVFC) in Springfield in their FCS finale while requiring the Bison to lose to FCS No. 5 South Dakota.
Missouri State football fell into too big of a hole early
The Bison scored two touchdowns within the first quarter’s first five minutes. A 52-yard rushing touchdown on the Bison’s second offensive play was followed by a Jayden Becks fumble deep in MSU territory on the Bears’ first play of their second drive. NDSU star quarterback Cam Miller completed a three-yard touchdown pass, on fourth down, shortly after.
NDSU built its lead up to 28-0 with 8:16 left in the half. The Bears scored off a one-yard Jacardia Wright run before Miller threw his first interception of the season. A trick play saw Hunter Wood throwing a 40-yard touchdown pass to Becks to cut the lead in half.
Any feel-good the Bears could take into halftime disappeared when the Bison marched down the field and scored on a one-yard touchdown pass with eight seconds left, regaining a three-touchdown lead.
North Dakota State dominated on both fronts
The biggest concern for the Bears heading into the game was how well their offensive and defensive lines would hold up against both elite Bison units. The answer? Not very well.
North Dakota State gashed the Bears on the ground with beautiful blocking throughout, opening up giant holes and allowing runners to pick up big gains. The Bison scored on rushes of 48, 49 and 52. They ended with 364 rushing yards while averaging 9.6 per carry.
On defense, the Bison got after Bears star quarterback Jacob Clark, sacking him four times and then sacking Brock Bagozzi twice when he came in relief. They limited the Bears’ grounded game to 86 combined yards with Jacardia Wright finishing with 68.
Were there any positives for Missouri State football?
Clark didn’t play poorly but looked overwhelmed early. He missed a few passes you’re used to seeing him make while the Bison pulled away. His 247 yards helped him break the school’s single-season passing record in one fewer game than Jason Shelley played during the fall 2021 season.
Other than that? There wasn’t much to write home about. It’s not terrible that the Bears got to see where they’re behind a top FCS team that might be among the best in the Group of 5 if NDSU ever gets an FBS invite. They have a lot of work to do in recruiting more offensive and defensive linemen who can be competitive at the next level.
North Dakota
Recap: Penn State wrestling sets NCAA history with 77th consecutive dual meet win
Penn State goes two for two and sets a new NCAA record
12/20/2025 07:26:07 PM
Penn State won two matches at the Collegiate Wrestling Duals and has set a new NCAA Division I record with 77 consecutive dual meet victories. The Lions pass Oklahoma State’s previous mark of 76 by beating Stanford 42-0. Earlier in the day, Penn State shut out North Dakota State.
Here are the full results from both matches:
PSU vs. NDSU
125 pounds: No. 2 Luke Lilledahl, Penn State d. No. 31 Ezekiel Witt, NDSU, 6-5 (PSU 3-0)
133 pounds: No. 10 Marcus Blaze, PSU md. No. 29 Tristan Daugherty, NDSU, 11-3 (PSU 7-0)
141 pounds: Nate Desmond, Penn State d. Michael Olson, NDSU, 4-1 (PSU 10-0)
149 pounds: No. 1 Shayne Van Ness, PSU TF No. 24 Max Petersen, NDSU, 19-2 (5:16) (PSU 15-0)
157 pounds: No. 8 PJ Duke, Penn State md. No. 21 Gavin Drexler, NDSU, 16-5 (PSU 19-0)
165 pounds: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, PSU TF Boeden Greenley, NDSU 18-1 (3:45) (PSU 24-0)
174 pounds: No. 1 Levi Haines, Penn State F. Max Magayna, NDSU (1:38) (PSU 30-0)
184 pounds: No. 4 Rocco Welsh, PSU TF Andrew McMcgonagle, NDSU, 19-4 (6:17) (PSU 35-0)
197 pounds: Josh Barr, Penn State TF Devin Wasley, NDSU, 19-3 (3:20) (PSU 40-0)
285 pounds: No. 13 Cole Mirasola, PSU F Drew Blackburn, NDSU (:33) (PSU 46-0)
PSU vs. Stanford
125 pounds: No. 2 Luke Lilledahl, Penn State d. No. 12 Nicco Provo, Stanford, 4-2 (PSU 3-0)
133 pounds: No. 10 Marcus Blaze, PSU F No. 6 Tyler Knox, Stanford (6:44) (PSU 9-0)
141 pounds: #Nate Desmond Penn State md. Lain Yapoujian, Stanford, 9-0 (PSU 13-0)
149 pounds: No. 1 Shayne Van Ness, PSU d. 14 Aden Valencia, Stanford, 10- 4 (PSU 16-0)
157 pounds: No. 8 PJ Duke, Penn State d. No. 5 Daniel Cardenas, Stanford, 5-2 (PSU 19-0)
165 pounds: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, PSU F. EJ Parco, Stanford (4:23) (PSU 25-0)
174 pounds: No. 1 Levi Haines, PSU md. Lorenzo Norman, Stanford, 14-4 (PSU 29-0)
184 pounds: No. 4 Rocco Welsh, PSU d. Abraham Wojcikiewicz, Stanford, 5-1 (PSU 32-0)
197 pounds: Josh Barr, PSU TF No. 19 Angelo Posada, Stanford, 19-3 (PSU 37-0)
285 pounds: No. 13 Cole Mirasola PSU TF Luke Duthie, Stanford, 21-6 (2:59) (PSU 42-0)
North Dakota
Suffolk prosecutors intercept, return scammed cash to North Dakota grandmother
An 80-year-old North Dakota grandmother scammed out of $8,500 has her money back after Suffolk County prosecutors and postal inspectors traced the package of cash, which was mailed to a Shirley address, and returned it earlier this week, district attorney’s officials said.
Officials said the woman received a call Dec. 12 from someone pretending to be her granddaughter, saying she had been in a traffic accident in Suffolk County and needed bail money.
The caller said she was charged with three crimes and then handed the phone to a man posing as her lawyer, who gave the grandmother instructions on how to send cash through the mail, district attorney’s officials said.
The grandmother mailed the cash, but the man kept calling, pestering her for more money, prosecutors said. The woman, who eventually realized she had been scammed, called police in Devils Lake, North Dakota, and reported the con.
Detectives, who made no arrests, tracked the package to Shirley. The Suffolk County Financial Crimes Bureau then worked with inspectors from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service to intercept the package two hours after it arrived on Wednesday and returned the money to the North Dakota woman.
“Our office is dedicated to combating scammers who prey on the senior citizen community, who criminals believe to be easy prey,” Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney said in a statement. “Bad actors should know that Suffolk County will not be a haven for mailing scams, and that we will do everything within our power to prevent citizens from being swindled by predatory scammers.”
North Dakota
Bill to improve rural veteran health care sees support from North Dakota providers
WASHINGTON, D.C. — North Dakota organizations have submitted letters of support for a federal bill that would improve veterans’ access to local health care options, which has been examined by the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee.
The bill – the Critical Access for Veterans Care Act – from Sen. Kevin Cramer and Sen. Tim Sheehy would allow veterans living in the rural United States to seek health care services at their local critical access hospitals or rural health clinics, a press release said.
“The Community Care program literally can be a lifeline,” said Cramer, R-N.D. “(What) prevents it from being a lifeline as often as it ought to be is all of the roadblocks that get put up. After hearing from veterans and rural health care providers and leaders across North Dakota, I proposed a solution with Sen. Sheehy to simplify access to the critical access network, whether it’s a critical access hospital (or) rural health clinic.”
Cramer and Sheehy’s (R-Mont.) bill would amend the VA (Veterans Affairs) MISSION Act of 2018 to make a new category under which “care is required to be furnished through community providers, specifically for care sought by a veteran residing within 35 miles of the critical access hospital or rural health clinic,” the release said.
The release also said a number of veterans live in rural areas and face major challenges to accessing timely and quality health care. In North Dakota, there are 37 critical access hospitals, but only five of those communities housing them also have a VA community-based outpatient clinic. The state has one VA medical center in Fargo and eight community-based outpatient clinics in total.
The bill has received letters of support from the North Dakota Rural Health Association and a coalition of 22 North Dakota rural health care providers, the release said, who wrote that the legislation will offer a streamlined and practical approach building on existing infrastructure and recognized designations in rural health care. The American Hospital Association, America’s Warrior Partnership and the National Rural Health Association have also voiced support for the bill.
Another letter of support for the bill has come from Marcus Lewis, CEO of the North Dakota Veteran and Critical Access Hospital. A veteran himself, he said he lives more than three hours from the nearest VA hospital and works two hours away from it. However, there are three community health care facilities within 50 miles of his home.
“Despite the availability of this high quality local care, I am currently paying out of pocket for needed therapy because accessing services through the Community Care Network has proven prohibitively difficult,” he wrote.
Cramer said the VA system gives veterans less access to care that is readily available, and the goal of the bill is to give rural veterans access to their local critical access hospitals without strings attached.
“I worry if the bill is watered down, quite honestly, that we turn the authority back over to the bureaucracy to decide,” he said.
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