No. 17 UNI Dominates No. 23 Indiana State, 59-13 [Videos]

The UNI Panthers dominated the Indiana State Sycamores, recording a 59-13 victory at the UNI-Dome on Saturday (Nov. 7, 2015). The win was UNI's third in a row following a 2-4 start to the season.

The 17th-ranked Panthers (5-4 overall, 3-3 MVFC) scored 28 points in the first half and held the No. 23 Sycamores (4-5, 2-4) to just 69 total yards of offense, ultimately sealing the win early. Aaron Bailey was a part of five of UNI’s eight touchdowns, rushing for four and throwing for one.

The four rushing touchdowns tied a single-game school record for rushing touchdowns in a game and total touchdowns in a game.

The junior quarterback finished the game 8-13-0 for 114 passing yards while adding 54 yards on the ground on 22 carries.

On defense, Karter Schult racked up seven total tackles, including three for a loss of yards. Isaac Ales had six tackles along with a forced fumble while both Tim Kilfoy and Jamison Whiting took home pick-sixes.

Senior Michael Schmadeke put the Panthers up 3-0 with 9:26 on the clock in the first quarter, converting on a 27-yard field goal attempt. His ninth field goal of the season ended a seven-play, 41 yard drive that took 2:59 off the clock.

UNI’s second scoring drive was set up by a key 46-yard punt return from Makinton Dorleant to land the Panthers in scoring territory. After some hard fought yards from Tyvis Smith to get UNI to the one-yard-line, Bailey snuck it in to put UNI up 10-0 with 4:47 left in the quarter. The drive lasted 1:50 for five plays and 19 yards.

Bailey punched his second rushing touchdown in early in the second quarter, giving UNI a 17-0 lead with 11:56 on the clock. His one-yard rushing score ended a 4:00 drive for 10 plays and 70 yards.

The Panthers continued to extend their lead when Kilfoy picked up his first pick-six of the season, taking it 30 yards to the end zone to give UNI a 24-0 lead with 10:56 left to play in the half. It was UNI’s third interception return for a touchdown this season and the third of Kilfoy's career.

UNI took a 31-0 lead over the Sycamores with less than three minutes to play in the second quarter when Michael Malloy dove across the goal line for a 10-yard rushing touchdown, ending a seven-play, 48-yard drive.

Dorleant had his hand in helping UNI’s fifth touchdown of the game, forcing and recovering a fumble to put UNI on the Indiana State 11-yard-line. Less than a minute later, Bailey reached the the end zone on a two-yard run for his third rushing touchdown of the game. The score put UNI 38-0 with 1:09 left in the first half.

Indiana State ended the shutout at the 7:57 mark of the third quarter when wide receiver Kelvin Cook dropped back and connected with Robert Tonyan for a 12-yard touchdown pass. The score was 38-6, following the missed extra-point.

Bailey continued his short-yardage dominance late in the third quarter, scoring another rushing touchdown. His six-yard rush into the end zone to put UNI up 45-6.

The Sycamores found some offensive rhythm before the third quarter ended, driving 75 yards in five plays. Matt Adam linked up with Sam Levingston on a 42-yard scoring toss to pull to within 45-13.

UNI added another touchdown with 5:20 left in the game when Bailey was in sync with Charles Brown for a 10-yard receiving score. Then the defense added the final score when Jamison Whiting returned an Indiana State interception 77-yards to the end zone.

NEXT UP: UNI returnS to action when the Panthers play at Missouri State on Saturday, Nov. 14. Kick-off is at 2 p.m. in Springfield, Mo.

Videos Courtesy of UNI Athletics via YouTube