BISMARCK, ND (PlayNorthStar.com) – The North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) announced their second installment of the 2024 Football Players-of-the-Week honors Monday.  Tray Hettick of Dakota State (S.D.) was selected as the Offensive Player-of-the-Week, while his teammate Carson Sauseda was named as the Special Teams Player-of-the-Week.  Parker Chaffee of Jamestown (N.D.) was chosen as the Defensive Player-of-the-Week.

NSAA Football Offensive Player of the Week
Tray Hettick – Dakota State (S.D.) – 6’3” – 205 lbs., Sophomore – quarterback – Selby, S.D. – Hettick was 18-of-26 (69.2 percent completion rate) for 233 yards with four touchdowns in fueling Dakota State (S.D.) to a 41-25 road victory at Nebraska Wesleyan.  He opened the game by connecting to Austin Lake for a 48-yard touchdown to give the Trojans a 7-0 lead with 14:43 left in the first quarter and never trailed.  He also threw a 41-yard touchdown pass to Melek Ford and a 4-yard touchdown pass to Tyce Ortman for a 24-0 lead.  Hettick added a 13-yard touchdown pass to Tysen Grinde in the third quarter to balloon the Trojans’ lead to 38-6.

NSAA Football Defensive Player of the Week
Parker Chaffee – Jamestown (N.D.) – 6’1” – 205 lbs., Redshirt Senior – defensive back – Phelan, Calif. – Chaffee recovered a fumble and returned it 68 years for a touchdown in the first quarter for Jamestown (N.D.), despite a 17-10 road setback to NCAA Division II Chadron State (Neb.).  He also registered an interception and six tackles (3 solos, 3 assists).  One of his tackles was recorded a tackle-for-loss (TFL) of six yards.

NSAA Football Special Teams Player of the Week
Carson Sauseda – Dakota State (S.D.) – 5’10” – 200 lbs. – Junior – kicker/punter – Georgetown, Texas – Sauseda was perfect 7-for-7 on his kicking game as Dakota State (S.D.) earned a 41-25 road victory at NCAA Division III Nebraska Wesleyan.  He collected 11 points, making two field goals of 27- and 32-yards to go along with all his five PAT extra-point kicks.  Sauseda recorded eight kick-offs for nearly 500 total yards (498 yards), with five of the kick-offs resulting in a touchback.  He averaged 62.3 yards per kick-off.

Recap from last week’s games
Jamestown (N.D.) fell short in their second game of the season on Sept. 5 to NCAA Division II Chadron State (Neb.).  The Jimmies opened with a 7-0 lead and ballooned their lead to 10-0 in the early third quarter.  Chadron State scored 17 straight unanswered points to hold off Jamestown (N.D.) by the score of 17-10.  CSU had 289 offensive yards and held UJ to 114 total offensive yards.  The Jimmies dropped to 0-2 overall record this season.

Valley City State (N.D.) earned their first win of the season on Sept. 6, defeating NCAA Division III Augsburg (Minn.) on the road.  The Vikings grabbed a 10-0 lead after the first quarter and held their lead to 10-7 by halftime.  Holding a slim 17-14 lead before entering the fourth quarter, VCSU secured the game with another touchdown in the fourth quarter to secure a 24-14 victory.  Augsburg outgained Valley City State 341-244 in total offensive yards.  The Vikings are 1-1 overall record on the season.

No. 15 ranked Dickinson State (N.D.) kicked off the North Star Athletic Association football schedule with a 31-7 road victory at Mayville State (N.D.) on Sept. 7.  The Blue Hawks opened with a 14-0 lead after the first quarter and never trailed in the game.  DiSU posted 268 total offensive yards and held MSU to 97 total offensive yards in the game.

Dakota State (S.D.) raced to a 24-6 halftime lead and ballooned their lead to 38-6 after three quarters, holding on to a 41-25 road victory at NCAA Division III Nebraska Wesleyan on Sept. 7.  The Trojans racked up 406 total offensive yards compared to the Prairie Wolves 358 total offensive yards.  Dakota State remained undefeated this season with a 2-0 record.

Looking Ahead
Mayville State (N.D.) remains home on Saturday as they host NCAA Division III Nebraska Wesleyan in a non-conference contest.  No. 15 ranked Dickinson State (N.D.) returns home on the same day as they welcome the NCAA Division III Wisconsin-Stout.

Dakota State (S.D.) and Jamestown (N.D.) open their North Star conference schedule in Madison, S.D., on Saturday afternoon.

Valley City State (N.D.) will be idle this week and return to action on Sept. 21 as they begin their conference play versus Dakota State.

            Saturday, Sept. 14
Nebraska Wesleyan @ Mayville State (N.D.) – 1 p.m.
Wisconsin-Stout @ (15) Dickinson State (N.D.) – 1 p.m. (Central Time)/12 p.m. (Mountain Time)
Jamestown (N.D.) @ Dakota State (S.D.) – 4 p.m.

NSAA Football Standings

Sept. 5 Result
Chadron State (Neb.) 17, Jamestown (N.D.) 10 – FINAL

Sept. 6 Result
Valley City State (N.D.) 24, Augsburg (Minn.) 14 – FINAL

Sept. 7 Results
(15) Dickinson State (N.D.) 31, Mayville State (N.D.) 7 – FINAL
Dakota State (S.D.) 41, Nebraska Wesleyan 25 – FINAL