WINONA, Minn. - The University of Sioux Falls football team rolled into Altra Federal Credit Union Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 22 with a No. 11 national ranking, an unbeaten record, and a ten-game winning streak dating back to 2021.

They left with a loss.

Playing in front of a homecoming crowd of nearly 4,600 fans enjoying an outstanding fall day, the Winona State University football team held the visiting Cougars - the top rushing team in the NSIC - to just 68 yards on the ground and used a run-heavy offensive attack themselves to earn the biggest win of the Brian Bergstrom era, downing Sioux Falls, 20-17.

Quarterbacks Kyle Haas and Trevor Paulsen combined for a 13-of-24 afternoon and 139 passing yards, and it was a 34-yard Paulsen strike to Joe Sikma in the fourth quarter tying the contest at 17-17 that gave WSU the momentum at a crucial point in the game.

In the first half, Paulsen's Warrior teammate and quarterback compatriot Haas hit Cooper Nelson from 20 yards out to notch the other WSU offensive touchdown of the day.  Nelson's lunge at the goal line to tag the pylon allowed WSU to enter the break within striking distance of visiting USF, who had taken a 10-0 lead up to that point.

Heading into the locker room behind 10-7, the Warriors earned the opportunity to control both the clock and the outcome in the second half, and the Warriors did just that.

Winona State conceded a third quarter score to the Cougars after the break, with USF's Ethan Wittenburg hauling in a 42-yard pass from Adam Mullen to stretch the Sioux Falls lead to 17-7.

However, Winona State would tally the next three scores and receive a key interception by Brian Corbins, Jr. to pull off the upset win, sending the Warrior crowd home happy.

After the Cougars' Mullen - Wittenburg touchdown, the Warriors drove 53 yards in 12 plays in the middle of the third quarter to allow placekicker Jacob Scott to connect from 35 yards out, pulling Winona State to within just one touchdown at 17-10.

That TD came just after the start of the fourth quarter, as Paulsen's pass to Joe Sikma hit paydirt in the end zone, and after Scott's successful PAT, the two teams were level at 17-17.

After a pair of unsuccessful drives for both teams, Winona State again turned to the run game, reeling off seven straight rushing plays - all by Sam Santiago-Lloyd - to position Scott for another field goal attempt. Scott split the uprights from 43 yards away, pushing the scoreboard to 20-17 in favor of Winona State with just over nine minutes to play.

WSU had another opportunity to add to their lead after a long drive put the Warriors in the red zone on the USF seven-yard line. Winona State went for it on fourth-and-one and were stopped, turning the ball over on downs. However, the play call also served as a de facto punt, pinning the Cougars deep in their own half.

Minutes later, after stopping the Cougars and forcing a punt, WSU drove again with promise but found themselves faced with another fourth-down decision at the USF 29-yard line. This time, the Warrior faithful then saw quarterback Paulsen drop back and pull off a pooch punt, placing a short, surprise kick into the Cougar's secondary.

On the ensuing drive from Sioux Falls, Brian Corbins, Jr. then picked off a Mullen pass attempt at 1:01 to go, allowing the Warriors to run out the clock with a pair of kneel-downs in victory formation, and a final score of 20-17.

On the ground, Sam Santiago-Lloyd led Winona State with 22 carries for 64 yards. Ty Gavin added eight attempts, all in the second half, adding 25 yards to the Warrior effort, while Paulsen scrambled for 14 more.

Joe Sikma, Cooper Nelson and Ricky Smalling combined for 143 yards receiving for Winona State, with Sikma and Nelson notching touchdowns.  

Defensively, Winona State was led by Mitch Snitker who racked up 14 tackles including several open field stops that stymied potential long yardage plays by the Cougars. Ikenna Ujuagu added a sack and forced fumble among his four stops while fellow Warriors Darius Manuel and Kyjuan Vengrowsky combined for three more sacks on the day. 

Tristan Root added a first-half interception in the end zone to break up a Sioux Falls scoring drive early on, and pulled double-duty for the Warriors, hitting three punts for 168 total yards. One of Root's efforts was downed at the 1-yard line in a key moment on special teams in the first half, a play the helped WSU win the field-position battle early on.

Jacob Scott was 2-for-3 on field goals, hitting the goalpost from 48 yards out in the first half but connecting with his next two kicks; Scott also drilled his two point-after attempts, stretching his perfect PAT streak to 25 straight.

The win over a ranked opponent is the first since Sept. 8, 2018, when the Warriors beat a then-ranked No. 14 Sioux Falls team 16-15 in Winona. WSU also defeated Sioux Falls last season, 14-10, the last loss Sioux Falls suffered over the past year until Saturday.

With the win, Winona State moves to 6 – 2 overall on the year and remains unbeaten at 3-0 in the NSIC South.  Following the loss, USF falls to 7-1, 2-1 in the division.

Winona State will return to Altra Federal Credit Union Stadium next week, as the Warriors host Augustana University on Saturday, Oct. 29. The Warriors and Vikings will kickoff at 1 p.m. on Maxwell Field in a key NSIC South matchup.