Despite the gray and chilly weather, the Winona State Women’s soccer team managed to continue their red-hot three-game winning streak and finish off homecoming weekend with two wins, one on Friday, Oct. 5 against Augustana University, and the other on Sunday, Oct. 7 against Wayne State University on home turf.

With the wins, the team has improved their record to 4-5-1.

The Friday night match proved to be a close one, with senior Addie Royer shooting the winning goal two minutes into overtime with an assist from senior Abby Bohanski.

The start of the game proved to be a struggle for the Warriors, as Augustana made their first goal in the ninth minute. The shot, completed by Morgan Keirstead and assisted by Peyton Stenzel, beat senior goalkeeper Jourdan Valkner to the top of the goal from the five-yard line.

After that, the first period was just a constant battle for the ball, keeping the front line fresh with frequent substitutions and shots made by both teams. Augustana attempted nine shots, with Winona making eight, six of which were ongoal and, five were saved by Vikings’ goalie Claudia Pueschner.

The second period started with Augustana’s Rebecca Gasper receiving a red card in the 50th minute. Thirty seconds after that, the Warriors scored their first goal of the game.

The shot was made by sophomore Melissa Greco and was a free kick into the box.

There was a bit more frenzy on the field after Winona State tied up the score, with more substitutions from both teams in an attempt to keep defense on their toes.

The Vikings managed only five shots in the second period, two of which were on goal, with the Warriors having another six on goal, which were all saved. By the end of the second period, the score was tied up, which threw the game into its first overtime.

The extra period didn’t last long, as Royer took hold of the ball and scored the winning goal within the 93rd minute, assisted by Bohanski to capture the win.

Sunday brought a new energy, as the athletes felt the new strength the team had formed over their last two wins and were hungry for another. There were plenty of new faces taking the field within the first period as well, as some new first-year athletes took the turf. Winona brought in first-year Yanel Ortiz for her first game as goalkeeper as a Warrior. She held her own, saving her first shot on goal within the sixth minute. Wayne State made three other shots, but all were either wide or high.

The first goal of the game was attempted by first-year Riley Harmon, her first game for the Warriors. She was assisted by first-year Kara Schramel in the 40th minute of the game.

Within the first ten minutes of period two, there were two fouls on Winona and one on Wayne State. This didn’t slow down the Warriors, though, as senior Courtney Wiencek scored the second goal of the game in the 60th minute, earning cheers from the rest of her team. Despite more shots on goal from Wayne State throughout the second period, the Warriors shut them out to earn them their third consecutive win.

“I am so proud of how the girls played this weekend,” said head coach Matt Kellogg. “The girls finally were able to pull everything together and get the wins that they deserved. I am excited to see where the rest of the season will take us, and hopefully this will put us on the right path to getting to the NSIC championships.”

The Warriors will play two more home games this weekend with the first on Friday, Oct. 12 at 7 p.m. against University of Minnesota Duluth, and the second on Sunday, Oct. 14 at 1 p.m. against St. Cloud State University.