Sam Thiel/ Winonan
Despite an angered mother nature, Winona State University’s football team delivered a 33-7 victory over the University of Minnesota Crookston.
Early in the game, a rainstorm interrupted a Golden Eagle drive. The play ended with a bobbled snap on a punt that rolled into the end zone for a Warrior safety and a 2-0 lead, which would be the only scoring play in the first quarter.
Head coach Tom Sawyer said, “The weather was a huge factor. It was as bad as I have ever been in. The defense did play well as they only had a couple plays on our side of the field in the second half.”
Crookston strung together their first scoring drive halfway through the second quarter as quarterback Ben Buchholz connected with Jacob Pinder for a 13-yard touchdown to give the Golden Eagles a 7-2 lead. This score would hold for the majority of the second quarter until Theo Burkett found the back of the endzone for the third time in as many games with a 20-yard touchdown rush to give the Warriors a 9-7 lead.
Winona State’s defense was rewarded later in the quarter with their second safety of the game to increase the Warrior lead to 11-7 with 31 seconds left in the first half.
The Warriors gave themselves some space right before the half as Jack Nelson connected with Tyler Swinford for a 25-yard score — his first as a Warrior — to give Winona State a 18-7 advantage heading into the locker room.
After both teams went scoreless in the third quarter, running back Paul Preston broke his streak of coming up short of the end zone with a three-yard rushing touchdown at the beginning of the fourth. Jordan Kos then tacked on a two-point conversion to give the Warriors a 26-7 lead.
“It was tough to have any offense, but Theo and Paul ran the ball very well on a greasy field,” Sawyer said.
A few minutes later, Winona State added an insurance score when defensive back Ryan Cain intercepted a Buchholz pass and ran it 30 yards to the end zone to provide the final score of 33-7.
Cain said, “As a defense we just continue to push each other to create opportunities to help the team win. We play the game with a chip on our shoulder and strive to be the best we can. The coaches put us in great position, and it’s our job to execute. Today we executed well.”
After using the air attack the first two games of the season, the Warriors used the ground game against Crookston, racking up 288 rushing yards against the last-ranked Golden Eagle defense. Crookston was limited to 55 yards against the Warrior defense.
Winona State piled up 447 yards of total offense while Crookston recorded 184 yards.
Burkett carried the ball 17 times for 135 yards and a touchdown, while Preston recorded 65 yards and a score. Direll Clark added 40 yards on five carries to pace the Warriors.
“My O-line did a great job up front covering people up. When the running backs got the ball in their hands, we did what we do,” Burkett said. “Due to the weather we couldn’t throw the ball too well, so it was up to the guys up front and the running backs to take over the game.”
Nelson ended his day by completing 11 of his 17 pass attempts for 159 yards and one score while also throwing his first interception of the season.
Senior Ryan Gerts led the way defensively for the Warriors, racking up seven tackles with one of those for a loss of yardage. Collin Corcoran recorded six tackles, as did Larry Mbayu, while also recording the only sack for the Warriors.
Cain said, “As for going into next week we just have to continue to have that chip on our shoulder and continue to build and improve on the little things because that is what games will ultimately come down to. It’s all a process, and we need to continue to strive to be the best we can be.”
The No. 24 Warriors (3-0) now face a NSIC matchup with No. 4 Minnesota Duluth inside Warrior Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. on Saturday.
