North Dakota rallies to upset Cal Poly 31-17

Nov 1, 2009 - 12:33 AM GRAND FORKS, N.D.(AP) -- North Dakota rallied from a 10-point deficit with 24 unanswered points to upset Cal Poly 31-17 Saturday.

Tony Smith had thrown touchdown passes of 10 and 30 yards to Jon Hall to lift Cal Poly to a 17-7 lead early in the second quarter.

The Mustangs looked as if they were going to add to that lead with a drive deep into North Dakota territory, but a fumble seemingly turned the game around.

The Sioux (4-4, 2-1 Great West) climbed within three points with 40 seconds left in the first half on quarterback Jake Landry's 28-yard TD run and an 8-yard scoring pass from backup quarterback Brent Goska to Ryan Konrath.

They then took the lead for good on their first possession of the second half. The eight-play, 91-yard drive ended with a 10-yard run by Mitch Sutton. Brandon Hellevang added a field goal early in the fourth quarter, and Sutton clinched it with a 5-yard scoring run with 3:38 to go.

The Sioux then intercepted two passes in the closing minutes to snap a two-game losing streak.

North Dakota finished with a 427-265 advantage in total offense. Cal Poly (4-4, 1-1) had only 100 yards after taking its 17-7 lead.

Sutton gained 143 yards on 30 carries, while Landry added 92 yards on 15 attempts. Landry also completed 14 of 22 passes for 181 yards. For Cal Poly, Smith was 13 of 27 for 203 yards, with Dominique Johnson having six receptions for 121 yards.