winona, minn. -- concordia university (2-2, 1-2 nsic, 0-1 nsic south) committed three turnovers in the first eight minutes, four in the first quarter and six total in a 37-10 loss at winona state university (3-1, 3-0 nsic, 1-0 nsic south) in an nsic south divisional contest played at alltel stadium in front of nearly 4,500 fans.
senior wide receiver tyrone ruffin (plymouth, minn.) led the cu offense with seven receptions, 113 yards and a touchdown.
in a game reminiscent of last season's match-up between the two northern sun rivals, the golden bears were unable to produce a second half spark as the warriors put away concordia on homecoming. The 2007 match-up saw concordia throw seven interceptions and the golden bears were safetied twice in what was also wsu's homecoming.
the second-straight homecoming match-up had something else in common: the warriors were unable to put the golden bears away despite the turnovers until the second half. In 2007, cu was driving in the third quarter threatening to make it a one score game before throwing their seventh interception. The ensuing drive for wsu resulted in a touchdown, giving the warriors a 28-7 lead which ended up being the final score.
this afternoon, it was the same theme, as concordia continued to turn the ball over early, wsu was unable to put them away, leaving concordia within reach at 21-10 going into halftime.
but this year, the warriors learned from their mistakes going into half number two, dominating cu in the final 30 minutes, outscoring the golden bears 16-0 down the stretch.
concordia came up empty for the fourth time in as many chances at alltel stadium in a series primarily dominated by the warriors. Winona state has won nine of the 11 meetings between the two teams in a series that dates back to 1988.
the warriors got on the board on their second drive of the game on a 59 yard passing strike from greg preston to justin thomas midway through the first quarter.
at 4:01 in the first, they scored again, this time using a short field as preston hit receiver tyree burks in the corner of the end zone from five yards out. The warriors were the benefactors of great field position following another cu turnover, only having to go 26 yards in barely over a minute.
after a scoreless first quarter, junior stephan bjerke (stillwater, minn.) put the golden bears on the scoreboard by drilling a 36 yard field goal. The bjerke field goal was the culmination of a solid 12 play, 71 yard drive in which the cu offense drained 5:07 off the clock to regain the momentum.
winona state responded with a methodical drive, marching 74 yards on seven plays to take a 21-3 lead.
concordia's all-time receiving touchdown, tyrone ruffin, put the golden bears in the end zone when he hauled in junior mitch brecke's (plymouth, minn.) five yard jump ball in the corner of the end zone. Ruffin now has 27 career touchdown receptions. His 113 yard effort gives him 2,442 career receiving yards, 301 shy of joseph mapson (2001-03) for the career record.
ruffin's touchdown from brecke came with the second quarter winding down to 1:27 until half. It was another attempt by the concordia offense to change the tone of the game, taking control of the ball for 11 plays and and over four and a half minutes as they moved 74 yards for the touchdown.
but it was reigning nsic special teams player of the week cullen fahey who sank concordia's hopes in the second half, connecting for three field goals, including a school record 47 yarder to cap off the scoring with 7:18 to play in the game.
concordia's defense was stout in the first half, coming up with numerous big plays in the wsu backfield, including sacks by sophomore orien facion (minneapolis, minn.) as well as a team-effort by senior tim oachs (mankato, minn.) and junior kyle tidemand (st. Francis, minn.).
the biggest plays on the defensive side may have been the tone-setting hits provided by sophomore linebacker rojeer wright (minneapolis, minn.). Wright delivered two earth-shattering tackles to wsu running back randy spring, both coming on screen passes that the astute linebacker snuffed out. Wright finished with a team-high nine tackles, 2.5 for loss.
the difference in the game came on the ground, however, as winona state's running backs rumbled for 229 yards on 39 attempts, averaging 5.9 per carry. Spring rolled for 103 yards while andy verbancouer bruised his way through the cu defense for a pair of touchdown runs.
concordia, meanwhile, rushed for only 22 yards on 21 attempts. On the ground, cu was led by sophomore hayden vavra (cambridge, minn.) with five carries for 28 yards.
through the air, brecke completed 24-37 for 269 yards and a touchdown but was intercepted three times and sacked twice. Wsu's preston was 8-16 for 116 yards and two scores while backup amir ross was 5-6 for 62 yards. Neither wsu quarterback fired an interception as the warriors didn't commit a turnover all afternoon.
while ruffin provided his ninth career 100 yard receiving day, senior t.j. Prunty (st. Paul, minn.) added five catches for 54 yards.
on special teams, sophomore t.g. Schoenberg (woodbury, minn.) had one of his finest collegiate performances, punting four times with a 47.2 yard average including two punts inside the 20 and a long of 51 yards. Senior dario moore (st. Paul, minn.) had a resurgence as a kick returner, returning four kickoffs for 91 yards and a long of 30.
the golden bears return home next saturday, september 27 when they entertain augustana for homecoming in another nsic south division contest.
