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Winona State upsets top-ranked MSU Mankato

October 25, 2015 at 4:00AM

Nelson (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Junior quarterback Jack Nelson become Winona State's all-time leading passer a week ago. He added an exclamation point to it on Saturday afternoon.

The Byron, Minn., native threw four touchdown passes, including a 27-yarder to junior wide receiver Cameron Johnson with 3 minutes, 22 seconds remaining, as the Warriors surprised No. 1 MSU Mankato 31-27 in an NSIC matchup at Blakeslee Stadium.

It was the Warriors' first victory in Mankato since a 26-21 triumph on Sept. 27, 1980. The win also halted the Mavericks' 40-game conference winning streak.

The Mavericks took a 27-24 lead on senior tailback Chad Zastrow's 43-yard run two minutes earlier. It was his second TD of the day.

The Mavericks had the ball twice following the go-ahead score but threw an interception on the ensuing possession and had the clock run out on them at the Winona State 47-yard line on their final possession.

Nelson, who completed 23 of 38 passes for 238 yards, threw two TD passes to Johnson and senior wide receiver Alan May. His second scoring strike to May gave the Warriors a 21-20 lead early in the fourth quarter.

Collin Corcoran and Andrew Spencer led the Winona State defensive unit. Corcoran tied a career-high with 16 tackles while Spencer had a career-high 15 tackles.

Augustana (S.D.) 35, Sioux Falls (S.D.) 28: Senior running back C.J. Ham scored on a 31-yard run with 22 seconds remaining as the Vikings scored two touchdowns in the final two minutes to knock off crosstown rival and No. 5-ranked Sioux Falls and claim the Key to the City. Junior quarterback Trey Heid scored on a 13-yard run, his second rushing TD of the game, with two minutes left to tie it at 28. He also threw for a touchdown. Augustana's defense forced a quick three-and-out following Heid's tying TD. The Cougars took a 28-21 lead when junior linebacker Drew Jackson returned an interception 21 yards for a TD with 12:16 remaining. Augustana threw four interceptions, two of which were returned for touchdowns, and also lost a fumble.

Bemidji State 28, St. Cloud State 27: Junior Vince Dinkel didn't touch the ball on offense or make a tackle on defense, but he played a huge role in the Beavers' win over the Huskies. Dinkel blocked St. Cloud State's extra point attempt late in the third quarter to preserve Bemdji State's one-point lead. The Huskies turned the ball over on two of their final three possessions following Dinkel's block. Jordan Hein threw two TD passes and opened the scoring with a 54-yard run for the Beavers. St. Cloud State quarterback Nate Meyer completed 24 of 36 passes for 361 yards and three TDs.

Minnesota Duluth 66, Minnesota-Crookston 17: The 20th-ranked Bulldogs churned up 378 yards on the ground in accumulating 541 yards of offense in the victory over the Golden Eagles. Jamiah Newell ran for two scores as the Bulldogs had five different players score rushing TDs.

Southwest Minnesota State 34, Upper Iowa 19: Blake Gimbel completed 42 of 56 passes for 454 yards and four TDs as the Mustangs topped the Peacocks.

MSU Moorhead 30, Minot State (N.D.) 20: The Dragons scored 17 fourth-quarter points, erasing a seven-point deficit to beat the Beavers. Zayne Medhaug and Kayne Griffith both scored on short runs in the final quarter.

Wayne State (Neb.) 20, Concordia (St. Paul) 17: Quarterback Layne Sullivan's second TD run, a 16-yard scamper midway through the fourth quarter, was the difference in the Wildcats' victory over the Golden Bears. He rushed for 139 yards on 20 carries.

Northern State 37, Mary 0: The Wolves defense forced six turnovers (three fumbles and three interceptions) in shutting out the winless Marauders. Junior linebacker Taylor Zemlicka had one of each.

Midwest Conference

Macalester 35, Lawrence 7: Quarterback Alec Beatty ran for three scores and running back Zandy Stowell added two TDs on the ground as the Scots rolled up 416 rushing yards in beating the Vikings. Beatty ran for 179 yards on 13 carries while Stowell finished with 193 yards on 25 attempts.

UMAC

St. Scholastica 32, Minnesota-Morris 7: Mitch Ejnik is dangerous every time he touches the ball. Ejnik opened the scoring with a 60-yard punt return and later returned a fumble 79 yards for another TD as the Saints beat the Cougars.

Northwestern 27, Westminster (Mo.) 10: Grant Schoen threw three TD passes, two to Joe Sutton, as the Eagles topped the Blue Jays.

Eureka (Ill.) 29, Crown 26: Austin Zirkle caught his third TD pass, a 7 yarder from Dontai Johnson, with 5:27 left as the Red Devils came from behind to beat the Storm.