WSU Football Shield–Photo Courtesy of WSU Football social media
(KWMN)- The Winona State football team were dominated in a road loss to the University of Minnesota-Duluth over the weekend, 38-14.
The Warrior defense was bested on the first Duluth drive, allowing an 85-yard touchdown drive to start off the scoring. They settled in, however, and were able to keep the Warriors in the tilt early on.
That was short-lived.
The defense forced a fumble early in the second quarter, but the Warrior offense couldn’t take advantage of their opportunities. After four punts from the Warrior offense, Duluth was able to jump out to a 21-0 lead with four minutes to go in the first half. The Bulldogs of Duluth missed a field goal to close the half, and at the break the scored stayed 21-0.
The Warriors had five possessions of offense in the first half. They punted on four of them, and Cole Stenstrom was picked off during the other. It felt like the Warriors had opportunities to make it a game, or at least to stay in the game–but none of them were exploited.
Any semblance of a second half comeback was squashed immediately when the Bulldogs took the 2nd half kickoff to the house to make the score 28-0. The Warriors played much batter in the final two quarters, but never overcame the deficit. 38-14 in favor of Duluth was the final score.
The Warriors were unable to win the battle in the trenches last Saturday. Yielding eight sacks to the Bulldog defense. It’s hard to win against any opponent when that occurs, almost impossible when you’re facing the 19th ranked team in the country. Stenstrom and the rest of the offense were in agreement that it was a mixture of the offensive line, and an inability to get the ball out quick enough that led to the sacks, according to Bergstrom. On top of that, the Warriors only mustered up 21 rushing yards. Which not only puts strain on Stenstrom under center but forces the offense to be one dimensional.
Of the few bright spots offensively, was wideout Sylvere Campbell, who caught six passes for 122 yards and a touchdown. Cooper Nelson caught the other touchdown pass for the Warriors. After the final whistle, quarterback Cole Stenstrom finished 23/34 with 298 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions.
The defense had plenty of positives, regardless of the final scoreline. They managed seven total tackles for a loss, including one sack and forced a turnover. The numbers won’t shock you, but they still held their own against one of the country’s best offenses. Trey Borske, junior linebacker, shined, coming up with three TFL’s of his own.
Brian Bergstrom is now 3-7 on the road in year two of his tenure at Winona State. Granted, a lot of the road opponents were the likes of Bemidji (three times), Mankato, and now Duluth. All of which are the top of the NSIC, and very tough opponents to beat on the road. The gap is noticeable, however, and Bergstrom will be the first to admit that there is a gap between his Warriors and the top of the NSIC. One that he plans on closing as soon as possible.
The Warriors will look to bounce back this coming Saturday, as they make the long trip to Bismarck, ND to face the University of Mary Marauders. U of Mary comes into the matchup at 0-5, but Bergstrom and company know that can’t take this squad lightly. Kickoff is set for 2:00 p.m.
Head Coach for Warrior football, Brian Bergstrom, joined the Winona Sports Network to discuss the loss, how to bounce back, and the gap between the top of the NSIC and the Warriors.
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