CROOKSTON, Minn. - The Winona State University soccer team came into their Sunday, Oct. 9 match at the University of Minnesota Crookston looking to jumpstart a Warrior offense that had been held scoreless 48 hours earlier in a hard-fought 1-0 loss at Bemidji State.
 
WSU found the right formula on Sunday, reeling off 36 shots and scoring three times to defeat the University of Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles, 3-0.
 
Jaida Wiege opened the Winona State scoring in the sixth minute and tallying the opening goal of the match unassisted.  Less than 20 minutes later, Warrior teammate Madelynn Drasher scored again, this time courtesy of a Sarah Strating assist to double the WSU goal count.
 
While the Winona State offense was busy in the first half, generating 18 shots overall and putting six on goal, the WSU goalkeeper corps of Chloe Swanson and Alyson Jumper were not. The Warriors held UMC to zero shots in the first half and Jumper replaced Swanson in the Winona State goal at the 30-minute mark of the match.
 
The two teams headed to halftime with the Warriors owning the advantage, 2-0.
 
After the break, Winona State continued the offensive pressure and were rewarded when Riley Harmon scored the third Winona State goal in the 58th minute. Harmon's strike was one of 18 shots WSU had in the second half.  Madelynn Drasher and Ellie Wardell collected assists on Harmon's goal. 
 
Defensively, Winona State earned the fourth shutout of the year, and the backline was led by Callie Menzel who went the full 90 minutes in the match.
 
Wiege's game-winning goal moved her to four on the season and Harmon's score kept her in the team lead with five goals on the year. Strating's helper, her third of the season, on the Drasher first-half score puts the Lino Lakes, Minn. product at the top of the WSU assist leaders.
 
Winona State finished the game with a 36-2 shot advantage and forced Golden Eagle goalkeeper Kathryn Brainerd into 13 saves. Warrior goalkeeper Jumper was needed to make one stop in the game early in the second half, while Yanel Ortiz played the final 23 minutes of the game in net as WSU earned the fourth shutout of the 2022 season.   Coming off the bench, Madison Dye led Winona State in shots with five.
 
For Winona State, the win moves the Warriors to 6-4-3 overall and 4-3-3 in NSIC play. Minnesota Crookston falls to 2-10 on the season and 1-9 in NSIC action.  
 
WSU returns to Altra Federal Credit Union Stadium on Friday, Oct. 14 when they host Minnesota State – Moorhead at 5 p.m.  That same weekend, WSU will host Northern State University on Senior Day, scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 16. Kickoff between the Wolves and Warriors is set for 1 p.m.