Bulldogs To Host Saginaw Valley State In First Round of Playoffs

Nov 13, 2011

Northland Sports Online

The University of Minnesota Duluth will begin defense of its NCAA Division II championship this Saturday afternoon with a first-ever clash against Saginaw Valley State University at James S. Malosky Stadium.

This marks the fourth year in row the Bulldogs have advanced to NCAA II postseason play, but the first time they’ve not received a first-round bye. UMD, which is seeded fourth in the NCAA II Super Regional Three, closed out the 2011 regular season with a 9-2 overall record and captured a share of its fourth consecutive Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference title by going 8-2.

No. 5 Saginaw Valley State is 7-3 in all games and tied for first place (with Grand Valley State University) in the final Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference North Division standings with that same mark.

The Bulldog-Cardinal victor will visit No 1 Colorado State University-Pueblo (11-0) a week from Saturday. In the other first round Super Regional Three matchup, No. 3 St. Cloud State University (9-2) of the NSIC will host No. 6 Wayne State (Mich.) University (8-3) of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference with the winner moving on to play at No. 2 Nebraska-Kearney (10-1) of the RMAC on Nov. 26.

The quarterfinals are scheduled for Dec. 3 at the site of the highest-seeded team while the two nationally-televised semifinal-round games will be held the following week. The NCAA II championship game kicks off at 10 p.m. (CT) on Dec. 17 at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Ala.

The Bulldogs have now qualified for the NCAA II playoffs on six occasions in their 79-year history (all coming in the past 10 seasons) and have a 9-3 record to show for it. Under direction of current head coach Bob Nielson, UMD laid claim to its first NCAA II title in any sport three years ago and repeated that feat last fall, ending both seasons with a perfect 15-0 mark.

The Bulldogs went 1-1 in the 2009 NCAA II postseason, upending Nebraska-Kearney 42-7 at home in the second round before dropping a 24-10 decision to visiting Grand Valley State. In 2002, Nielson directed the UMD to an 11-0 mark during the 2002 regular season, but then fell 45-41 at Northwest Missouri State University in the first round of the playoffs. Three years later, head coach Kyle “Bubba” Schweigert and his Bulldogs were ambushed 23-12 by the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, N.D., in another opening-round contest.

Saginaw Valley State has made the NCAA II playoffs six previous times, the last coming in 2009.

Comments can be sent to sports@northlandsportsonline.com