The second-ranked team in Class 11B football will get the matchup it has been waiting for all year, as Winner defeated Wagner, 13-12, on Saturday night in Winner to advance to the South Dakota state championship game.
The Warriors will matchup against the top-ranked team in the state in Tri-Valley.
Winner almost didn't have the chance to play Tri-Valley, as Wagner gave the Warriors all they could handle.
Both teams were unable to muster much offense in the first quarter. Then in the second quarter, the Warrior defense got an interception from junior J.D. Farley at Wagner's 38-yard line.
Winner got the ball inside the 10-yard line, but Wagner senior Robert Kokesh knocked away Wonnenberg's pass on fourth down to force the turnover.
Wagner got on the board when senior Brett Kuca hit junior Soloman St. Pierre for a 35-yard pass. St. Pierre bobbled the pass a couple times before getting a handle on it to score the touchdown.
Wagner was unable to convert the two-point play, but took a 6-0 lead with 1:01 left in the first half and went into halftime with the lead.
Winner still wasn't able to get its offense going in the third quarter, but the Warriors' defense was determined to keep the team in the game.
Late in the third quarter, Mitch Breen broke free for a run of about 15 yards, but the Warriors stripped the ball away from Breen and senior Jayd Docken recovered the fumble for Winner.
Winner took over at Wagner's 36-yard line and three plays later, the Warriors moved the ball down to the 11-yard line thanks to a Wagner personal foul.
The Warriors capitalized two plays later when Wonnenberg scored on a 4-yard quarterback keeper. The extra point was good and Winner went up 7-6 to start the fourth quarter.
Then on Wagner's next possession, Wonnenberg intercepted
Kuca and returned the ball to the Wagner 42-yard line.
Winner drove the ball down to the 17-yard line, but the Wagner defense forced a fourth-and-12 play.
However, Winner would not only convert the fourth-down conversion, but Wonnenburg hit senior Jayd Knodell for a 20-yard touchdown pass.
Winner was unable to make the extra point, keeping it a one-possession game at 13-6 with 8:06 left.
Wagner was forced back to its own 8-yard line on the kickoff because of a holding penalty.
The Red Raider offense didn't let the poor field position hold them back and Kuca hit St. Pierre for a 92-yard touchdown pass.
Wagner attempted to take the lead on the two-point conversion as Breen got the carry right up the middle, but Winner stopped Breen just short to keep the lead at 13-12 with 7:34 to go.
"We knew it would be a physical game, and it should be at this point," Aaker said. "We figured it would be a low-scoring game, but we also missed some chances."
Winner had 190 total yards of offense, 161 on the ground, and was led by Knodell's 87 yards on 17 carries and 20 yards receiving with a touchdown.
TRI-VALLEY 35, ABERDEEN RONCALLI 14: Nate Kirby rushed for 215 yards to lead top-ranked Tri-Valley to a 35-14 win over Aberdeen Roncalli in the semifinals of the Class 11B state playoffs on Saturday.
The win sets up a showdown for Tri-Valley (11-0 overall) with second-ranked Winner for the state title on Thursday in the DakotaDome.
Kirby scored three 2-yard touchdown runs as Tri-Valley outgained Aberdeen Roncalli, 338-67, on the ground.
