For the first time since 1999, the Winfield-Mount Union Wolves football team is bound for the UNI-Dome. Top-ranked WMU defeated number-seven Don Bosco 34-29 in a thrilling game last night in the 8-man state quarterfinals.

The undefeated Wolves initially fell behind, with Don Bosco marching four plays and 61 yards to score an opening-drive touchdown on a run by quarterback Kaiden Knaack. But, after a punt on their opening possession, Winfield-Mount Union got a fourth-down stop on defense and scored the tying TD on a 23-yard pass from Jake Edwards to Abram Edwards, plus a two-point conversion for an 8-6 lead.

The Wolves added to their advantage when Jake Edwards found Eli Miller from nine yards out, but Don Bosco would tie the game at 14 on a touchdown pass from Knaack and a two-point try.

Winfield-Mount Union recovered a fumble deep in Dons territory and took the lead back on a Cam Buffington TD run from two yards out and a Jake Edwards scramble for two. But after Don Bosco recovered an onside kick attempt, Knaack found Ben Belew for a 23-yard scoring strike and ran in the conversion to send the game to halftime tied at 22.

WMU started the second half with a bang, as Jake Edwards found Carter Loyd for a 56-yard catch and run on the second play of the third quarter. The Wolves stood tall on defense most of the second half, meaning a Buffington touchdown run late in the period stretched the lead to 34-22 going into the fourth quarter.

Don Bosco would rally behind big plays from Knaack, setting up his second TD run of the night from a yard out with six minutes to go. Winfield-Mount Union would ultimately give the ball back to the Dons in the final minutes, and Knaack drove Bosco to the Wolves’ 17-yard line. But, on fourth down and with only nine seconds to play, Cole Milks intercepted a Knaack heave to the end zone to secure the victory.

Jake Edwards led the WMU offense by completing 10 of 22 pass attempts for 210 yards and three scores. Loyd hauled in three of those passes for 101 yards, while Abram Edwards had three receptions for 76 yards.

Buffington finished with 10 rush attempts for 46 yards, while Milks had 52 yards on four carries to help Winfield-Mount Union improve to 11-0, their most wins in a single season in two decades. The Wolves now advance to the 8-man state semifinals Wednesday at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls.