The University of Minnesota Duluth may have faced its toughest opponent of this season in No. 9 Winona State University. Despite allowing the opposing team to win its first set in ten matches, UMD (13-0, 5-0 NSIC) still downed the Warriors (12-2, 3-2 NSIC) 3-1 Saturday afternoon at Romano Gymnasium.

Head coach Jim Boos hit yet another milestone with the victory - recording the 400th win in his highly successful coaching career. The Bulldogs have now opened the 2016 season with 13 straight wins, their longest season-opening streak since the 2011 Bulldogs rattled off a program best 25 straight wins to begin the year. Winona State was able to steal the opening set from UMD, ending the 28 consecutive set streak for the Bulldogs.

Senior leadership paved the way for UMD's offense - middle blocker Sydnie Mauch and outside hitter Taylor Wissbroecker recorded 14 kills a piece while hitting .500 and .294, respectively. Sophomore libero Erin Schindler ended the match just won dig shy of her career best, racking up a total of 28 over the four sets. Freshman setter Emily Torve narrowly missed a career-high as well, ending two kills short of her personal best with 53 assists.

UMD and Winona battled back and forth for much of the opening set. The teams were tied up on eight different occasions, including at 22-22. The Bulldogs would grab the next two points, but were unable to finish the job as they allowed four straight points to give away their first set in three weeks by a score of 26-24. UMD outhit Winona State .262 to .208 in the opening frame, while sophomore outside hitter Makenzie Morgen tallied up eight digs and three kills.

The resilient Bulldogs came out after the first set loss looking to change the match and jumped out to a quick 4-1 lead. After eventually grabbing a 24-20 lead, UMD was able to finish off the Warriors this time around, taking a 25-20 set victory. Reigning NSIC Player of the Week Sydnie Mauch flashed her dominance by recording seven kills on nine attacks for a .667 hitting percentage.

The third set may have been the most well-played of the match for UMD, holding Winona State to hitting just .111 while hitting .382 themselves. The Bulldogs grabbed an early 5-2 lead and never let the Warriors within 3 points the rest of the set, resulting in a dominant 25-17 victory.

Sophomore right side hitter Sarah Kelly decided to take things into her own hands in the third and final set - earning seven of the team's 16 kills and hitting .667 in the process. Although Winona State jumped in front 9-5, UMD responded with a run of six straight points, forcing third year head coach Joe Getzin to take a timeout for the Warriors. The Bulldogs would go on to keep the lead the remainder of the match, ending the NSIC clash with a 25-20 set and match victory.

After knocking off one top ten team, the road doesn't get any easier for No. 2 UMD as they travel to take on NSIC rival and top-ranked Concordia University, St. Paul next Friday (Sept. 30) at Gangelhoff Center in St. Paul, Minn.