ST. CLOUD, Minn. – (RV) Winona State University suffered its first setback of the season Friday night as the Warriors opened conference play against No. 19 St. Cloud State. In a tightly contested match, as most will be from here on out in NSIC play, the Warriors claimed the first set against the Huskies before the home team rallied for a 3-1 victory.

St. Cloud State won the match by scores of 22-25, 25-23, 25-21, 25-22 to improve to 9-0 (1-0 NISC), while Winona State falls to 8-1 (1-0 NSIC) with its eight-match winning streak coming to an end.

Freshman Madison Larson set another new career high in the loss with 23 kills – six coming in the set one win for WSU. The Warriors collectively hit .455 in the first game with only one attacking error. Winona State wasn't as sharp offensively in the next two sets and lost both by a combined six points.

In the decisive fourth set, the Warriors committed eight attacking errors, their most on the night, which ultimately led to the Huskies' triumph. St. Cloud State owned a .318 attacking percentage in the match compared to a .237 mark by WSU.

At the net defensively, the Warriors held an 8-6 advantage in team blocks. Madison Rizner recorded five for Winona State to go along with seven kills. Libero Becca Pagel led the team with 17 digs.

The Warriors' schedule doesn't get any easier in the weekend finale slated for Saturday afternoon at No. 4 Minnesota Duluth. First serve is slated for 2 p.m.