UW-Whitewater and UW-Platteville both opened with victories in the opening round of the NCAA Division 3 football playoffs.
St. Norbert College (8-3) gave Whitewater a run for their money, trailing 3-0 late in the first half and 17-7 heading into the 4th quarter. But the Warhawks but the clamps down defensively in the 4th quarter, holding the Knights to 1-yard in the final 15-minutes and pulling out a 31-7 win.
The Warhawks got a 33-yard touchdown pass from Matt Behrendt to Jake Kumerow with 8:34 left, and Behrendt found Derric Junakin on a 4-year touchdown on fourth down with 36 seconds left to close out the scoring.
Platteville wins
In Platteville, John Kelly threw for 422 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Pioneers to a 54-20 win over Concordia (Wis.). Kelly was 28 of 38 passing to lead 10-1 Platteville.