BURNSVILLE, Minn. – Minot State has been selected to finish sixth in the North Division in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference preseason football poll as selected by the league head coaches and announced by the conference office on Thursday.

The Beavers, who finished last season with a 3-8 overall record, received 20 points to finish in sixth place in the North Division poll. Minot State was 13th in the overall poll after garnering 63 points.

Minot State, which opens fall camp on Aug. 6, heads into year two of the Mike Aldrich era.

The Beavers return five starters on offense led by Honorable Mention All-NSIC selection junior Lavante Bushnell at wide receiver. Bushnell led the Beavers with 38 catches and 427 yards, while also topping the team with five touchdown receptions.

Junior Lane Torgerson played in all 11 games last year and caught 22 passes for 184 yards. He also averaged 20.6 yards per kick return and 11.0 yards per punt return.

The offensive line will be anchored by the return of juniors Parker Franzen and Eric Besalda. Franzen started all 11 games last season, while Besalda made seven starts on the year.

The Beavers quarterback will be decided in fall camp with Andy Jones, Ben Bolinske and Kylar Sharp all competing for the starting job.

Sophomore Hayden Van Winkle returns at running back after rushing for 236 yards last season.

The defense will be led by Second Team All-NSIC cornerback Kiante Goudeau. Goudeau topped the Beavers with five interceptions and finished the season with 63 total tackles.

The Beavers will feature plenty of experience on the defensive front as Tamrick Ross, Jordan Will, Ellis Parr and Reginald Desronvil all return.

The special team duties will be handled by First Team All-NSIC punter JoseLuis Moreno. Moreno averaged 38.8 yards per punt and had seven punts over 50 yards. He will also handle the kicking duties for the Beavers after making 7-of-13 last season including a 48-yard field goal at St. Cloud State.

Minot State will open the season on Aug. 30 when it hosts Minnesota Duluth at 6:30 p.m. in Herb Parker Stadium.

— MSU athletics

Track: Beavers receive academic honors from USTFCCCA

Minot State’s Amber Hunsaker, Tanner Gust and Jacob Hatfield along with the Beaver men’s and women’s track and field programs were honored by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) on Thursday. Hunsaker, Gust and Hatfield earned All-Academic honors, while the men’s and women’s team each received All-Academic team recognition.

To qualify for USTFCCCA All-Academic honors, student-athletes must have compiled a cumulative GPA of 3.25 and have reached a provisional or automatic qualifying standard for the NCAA Championships in either the indoor or outdoor seasons.

Hunsaker met the NCAA provisional standard in the javelin throw when she notched a mark of 138-2 at the Kit Mayer Invitational. Gust topped the provisional standard in the hammer throw with a mark of 179-4 at the North Dakota State Tune-Up, while Hatfield reached the provisional standard in the weight throw during the indoor season with a toss of 59-0 at the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Championships.

In total, 216 teams were honored for their academic performance by the USTFCCCA, which included 132 women’s teams and 84 men’s programs. The Minot State women tied for the fifth-best grade point average among the teams honored with a cumulative GPA of 3.57. The Minot State men’s program recorded a GPA of 3.14.

— MSU athletics