Freshman Fred Amey caught 11 passes for 160 yards.

The win improved the Lumberjacks to 8-2 overall and 5-2 in the Big Sky Conference. With the eight wins, NAU will likely receive an invitation to the NCAA Playoffs. The Hornets fell to 2-8 overall and 1-5 in league games.

Bingham, who took over the primary running back role for the team after Marcus King suffered a knee injury, scored on runs of 1, 2, 26 and 2 yards. He also caught a 31-yard touchdown from Preston Parsons in the fourth quarter.

Sacramento State was not to be outdone statistically. Freshman quarterback Ryan Leadingham threw for a career-best 374 yards and two touchdowns. The 374 yards is the fifth-highest in school history and is the most since Ricky Ray tossed 377 yards against UC Davis on Sept. 18, 1999.

Leadingham’s primary target was fellow freshman Fred Amey. The Union City, Calif., native grabbed a career-high 11 passes for 160 yards. The 11 receptions is the third-highest output in the school’s I-AA history and the yardage total ranks 11th. Michael Johnson, Jr., added 104 receiving yards on eight receptions. The pair became the first Hornet duo to record 100-yards in a game since Scott Towne (107) and Lamont Webb (106) torched Weber State on Sept. 30, 2000.

NAU jumped on the board first when Tom Winn caught a 4-yard pass from Parsons with 5:55 left in the first quarter. Sacramento State tied the game at the 3:14 mark on Garrett White’s first rushing touchdown of the year.

The second quarter began with a pair of Lumberjack scores. Bingham plunged for his first score at 14:27 and Parsons found Peter Cich with 9:55 left for an 18-yard strike. The Hornets pulled within seven, 21-14, at the half when Andrew Bonner scored his first career touchdown from a yard out.

The Hornets tied the game with 10:03 left in the third quarter on a 47-yard touchdown run by Derard Barton. The run was the longest of Barton’s career and the longest by a Sacramento State player this season. Bingham put NAU back on top with a 2-yard run to end the scoring in the period.

The Hornets were able to cut the lead to three after a 33-yard Bret LeVier field goal but Bingham added to the Lumberjack lead with his receiving score. Amey answered with a 17-yard touchdown before Bingham rambled 26 yards. Bingham added his final score with 1:23 left from two yards and Ty Dondelinger added the extra point to make the score, 50-32. Sacramento State’s final score came with four seconds left as Leadingham hooked up with Brett Collins for a 2-yard pass. White rushed for the two-point conversion to end the scoring.

Sacramento State will have one week off before travelling to Portland State on Nov. 24. The game was originally scheduled for Sept. 15 but was postponed due to the terrorist attacks.

NOTES:

Brandon Coleman intercepted Parsons on his first passing attempt of the game ending his streak at 158 attempts without a pick...Coleman leads the team with four interceptions...the game marked the first time that the Hornets have played at home with rain since 1996...Sacramento State’s 15 seniors were honored prior to the start of the contest...the crowd of 5,510 gave the Hornets a season average of 11,490, three better than the previous season-high average of 11,487 set last year...Leadingham now ranks 10th on the school’s career yardage list with 2,440 passing yards...he needs 93 yards against Portland State to set the single-season record which is currently held by Tony Corbin (1995).

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