I first started at the Bemidji (Minn.) Pioneer as an intern in the summer of 1996. That would begin six years as a news reporter, sports reporter and copy editor for a small, six-day-per-week daily newspaper in northern Minnesota. I wrote a large range of stories from multiple beats, to features to sports, my favorite being the coverage of the Red Lake Reservation High School basketball team named the Warriors. Here is a collection of my stories from my time at the Pioneer.
Sept. 27, 1998
By Devlyn Brooks
Bemidji State wideout Jason Leden caught eight passes for 142 yards and a touchdown, and tailback Chris Meyer rushed for his fourth straight 100-yard game to lead the Beavers past Moorhead State 22-10 Saturday in the 50th anniversary of the Battle of the Axe.
The win gave the Beavers (3-1, 1-0) their first victory over the Dragons (1-2, 0-1) since 1992, while BSU's third-year head coach Jeff Tesch recorded his first win over his alma mater. Tesch was an All-America tight end for the Dragons, and was included into the MSU Hall of Fame last year.
The win lifted BSU to 1-0 in the NSIC, and Moorhead fell to 0-1 in the conference.
After scoring the first points of the game on a 52-yard scamper up the middle by junior quarterback Tony Duerr, the Dragons' offense fell silent and BSU's much-improved defense played near flawless football.
"They played good defense, and they deserved to win," Dragons head coach Ralph Micheli said. "We just didn't play very well. If we're going to be any better than this, we have to execute better."
Moorhead senior tailback Grover Moore, who had 162 yards rushing and a TD entering Saturday's conference opener, was held to a meager 20 yards on 10 carries.
Moore ran for 200-plus yards last year and three TDs to help the Dragons thrash BSU 36-17. He needs only 800-plus yards to set MSU's all-time rushing record.
"We tried focusing on the pass and different running plays. But we didn't execute. ... That's the bottom line," Moore said after the game. "We could have moved the ball, but we didn't execute."
The Beavers, featuring a newly explosive, run-and-shoot offense, answered the Dragons' TD with an 80-yard touchdown reception from junior college transfer quarterback Ben Morie to Leden about four minutes later.
It was the sixth time the two have connected for touchdowns through the air this season.
BSU took the lead seconds before the first half closed, when Meyer, whose ranked third in NCAA Division II rushing, punched in a touchdown from the one yard line. BSU failed to convert the kick, making the score 13-7 at half.
On Moorhead's first drive after half, Beavers senior linebacker Vince Varpness blocked Dragons' punter Cory Schmidgall's punt deep in his own territory, and sent the ball rolling into the BSU end zone where Varpness recovered it.
The Beavers elected to go for two, but a pass attempt by Morie was busted up.
Late in the third, after forcing the Dragons to a three-and-out, the Beavers drove 60 yards in eight plays to convert a Matt Mattson 30-yard field goal, ensuring that Moorhead needed more than just two touchdowns to win.
Moorhead took the ensuing kickoff and drove 36 yards to the BSU 21 before Randall Fallas kicked a 38-yard field goal narrowing the score to the final 22-10. The Dragons never touched the ball again until it was too late in the fourth quarter.
"We knew if we could control the running game, we'd have a chance," Tesch said. "Our guys won the war in the trenches, and that gives you the chance."
Defensively, the Beavers were led by junior end Jay Hanson who recorded three sacks, to add to the eight he already had. Junior linebacker Erik Pederson led the Dragons with 10 tackles (six solo, and four assisted).
BSU travels to conference favorite Winona State next weekend, while Moorhead faces the University of Minnesota-Duluth at home.
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