The Simpson College football team couldn’t keep up with the VIkings of Augustana in their season opener Saturday, falling 30-13 on the road as heard live on 94.3 KNIA.

The Storm couldn’t find any consistency on offense throughout the first half as Augustana would make highlight-catch after highlight-catch on long gains down the field, as the Storm fell behind 9-0 after the first and 23-0 at the halftime break. The Vikings scored on their first drive of the second half to lead 30-0, but the Storm would then begin to strike back and find momentum. Jerad Fischer pushed across the goal line with a 1-yard rush to score the first touchdown of the season in the third quarter, then an extended drive saw J Jensen III find freshman Noah Cracraft in the corner of the endzone as time wound down in the fourth for the final score.

Head coach Reed Hoskins tells KNIA Sports the Storm had good plays in the first half, and despite the score felt they were keeping up with the Vikings, they just needed to do the little things a lot better.

Cole Staska had 10 receptions for 110 yards in the game, while Dillan Gulley had 11 tackles. The Storm are now 0-1, and will host Crown College at Buxton Stadium this Saturday.