Maryville, Missouri – Northwest Missouri State rushed for seven touchdowns and rolled up 541 yards of total offense and knocked St. Cloud State University out of the NCAA playoffs with a 59-21 win in Maryville Saturday afternoon.
 
St. Cloud State, ranked #12 in the final regular season Division II polls, finishes the season with a 12-2 record, a school record for wins. #2 ranked Northwest Missouri State improved to 13-0 and advances to the NCAA semi-finals against Grand Valley State University next Saturday.
 
"Congratulations to Northwest Missouri State. They did a great job today," said St. Cloud State head coach Scott Underwood. "It was a tough day for our 16 seniors."
 
Billy Creason set the tone for the Bearcats as he rushed for the first two scores of the game. Teammate Phil Jackson ran for two touchdowns in the second quarter and the Bearcats took a 28-0 lead into halftime.
 
The Huskies scored on their opening drive of the second half on a Phillip Klaphake (Princeton) 17-yard pass completion to Dan Brown (Robbinsdale). The Huskies added touchdowns on a five-yard Michael Walker (Walworth, Wis.) run in the third quarter and a Klaphake 14-yard run late in the fourth quarter.
 
"We didn't execute like we usually do, especially for an offense that can score points," said Klaphake. "I am proud of our team and how we fought back in the second half. They did a great job and they're a tough team."
 
Creason rushed for three touchdowns and Jackson ran for four to lead the Bearcats. Jackson finished with 15 carries for 117 yards while Creason ran for 99 yards on 15 carries. Bearcats quarterback Trevor Adams completed 18 passes for 212 yards.  Three players, including Creason had three catches in the game.
 
The Huskies Michael Walker finished the game with 14 carries for 65 yards and one touchdown. Brother Kenneth Walker added 41 yards on five carries. Klaphake completed 11 of 28 passes for 169 yards and one touchdown. Brown caught a team high four passes for 48 yards.
 
Defensively, the Huskies Miky Woods (Brooklyn Park) and Kyle Risinger (Excelsior) each had ten tackles in the game.