The University of Mary football team plays its final road game of 2026 on Saturday, Nov. 7, at Winona State, with kickoff set for 1 p.m. Central at Altra Federal Credit Union Stadium in Winona, Minn., per both schools' schedules. It is also Winona State's home finale.
Both teams arrive at 3-6. UMary is 2-6 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference and 1-4 in the NSIC North, while Winona State is 3-5 in the league and 2-3 in the South Division, per the NSIC standings. UMary has lost three straight, according to its schedule.
UMary is coming off a 34-31 loss at Minot State in the Battle for the Big Lake on Oct. 31. UMary Athletics reported that the Marauders took a 31-27 lead on Carl Henry's second touchdown with 1:53 left before the Beavers scored with 44 seconds remaining. Per UMary's game notes, Ryan Blair completed 25 of 36 passes for 324 yards, and Mandan's Karsyn Jablonski caught six passes for 127 yards. Winona State led Sioux Falls 7-0 at halftime the same day before the Cougars scored 21 straight points in a 21-14 win, according to Winona State Athletics.
The series has belonged to the Warriors. UMary's game notes say this is the 15th meeting, that Winona State leads 13-1 and has won the last 10, and that the Marauders' only win was a 21-19 road victory in 2010. In the last meeting, the release says, UMary scored the first 19 points before Winona State rallied for a 36-29 win, with the go-ahead score coming with 1:06 to play.
Through nine games, UMary's official season statistics show Blair at 194 of 282 for 2,012 yards and 12 touchdowns. Jablonski leads the team with 60 catches for 885 yards and six touchdowns; the game notes say his receiving yards lead the NSIC. Xavier Brackenridge has 409 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns. Linebacker Christopher Federico has 84 tackles, including 9.0 for loss, and Bismarck native Vegas George, a Legacy High School graduate, has five sacks, per the release. Bismarck's Carter Henke is averaging 48.1 yards per punt, which UMary says leads the NSIC.
Winona State's season statistics list Jacob Sampson at 116 of 187 for 1,164 yards and eight touchdowns in seven games. Jahmani Muhammad leads the rushers with 523 yards. Jake Schultz has 48 catches for 504 yards, and Nolan Ginskey has five touchdown catches. Ethan Doucette leads the defense with 71 tackles, and Blake Schraufnagel has three sacks.
After Saturday, UMary closes the season at home against Bemidji State on Nov. 14 at 1 p.m. at the MDU Resources Community Bowl in Bismarck. It is Senior Day, per the UMary schedule. Bemidji State is 4-5 overall and 4-4 in the NSIC, per the conference standings. Winona State finishes at Southwest Minnesota State on Nov. 14, according to its schedule.
Sources: University of Mary Athletics football schedule, season statistics and Nov. 6 game preview release (goumary.com); Winona State Athletics football schedule, season statistics and Oct. 31 game recap (winonastatewarriors.com); Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference football standings (northernsun.org).
