WSU Football Shield–Photo Courtesy of WSU Football social media
(KWMN)- The Winona State Warrior Football team fell in their opening matchup with Saginaw Valley State, 34-24. With Concordia St. Paul on the Horizon, the Warriors are already looking to bounce back.
After a slow start, the Warriors allowed SVS to jump to a 27-0 lead. It wasn’t until seconds left in the first half that the Warriors put points on the board, with an 8-yard touchdown toss to Kaleb Skelly, from Cole Stenstrom. The Warriors fought back in the second half, but the clock ran out, and the comeback was just short.
Cole Stenstrom, University of South Dakota transfer, earned the starting job for week one. In what was maybe pre-game nerves and jitters, he didn’t get it going until that second half. Stenstrom looked the part from there, however. Showcasing his talent while giving the Warriors a chance late in the game. He finished the game 16/37 for 160 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. There were many of times when Stenstrom was just off on making a big play, which should be seen as a positive, rather than a negative. The Warriors couldn’t get their ground game going either. A lot of that had to do with the deficit the team was facing, which forced the Warriors to pass much more. They’ll look to run the ball more effectively this Saturday.
The defense, similar to the rest of the team, got off to a slow start as well, giving up 27 first half points. They bunkered down in the second half, only allowing seven more points. Regardless of the slow start, the defense managed to force three turnovers.
All in all, the message to the team afterwards was to avoid the slow start. If the team played all four quarters as they did for the last two, the outcome might’ve been much different.
Head Coach for the Warriors, Brian Bergstrom, joined the Winona Sports Network to discuss the loss, how to bounce back in week two, the quarterback competition, and more.
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