MINNEAPOLIS - This was not supposed to happen.

Winona State University, with eight new players - six of those being freshmen - was not supposed to walk into Williams Arena and do what they did to the University of Minnesota women's basketball team Wednesday night.

This was, by most accounts, supposed to be an exhibition tune-up for the Gophers, a team with four returning starters that is picked to finish third in the Big Ten. Even WSU coach Scott Ballard admitted to being a bit concerned about a "beat down" the night before the game.

It was anything but.

Natalie Gigler, a junior forward from Brooklyn Park, Minn., drilled a 12-foot baseline jumper with 1 second left to give WSU a stunning 64-62 win over the Gophers before 3,388 fans. It was the first time the two teams have met since 1978.

"It gives us a lot of confidence and a lot of credibility," said WSU coach Scott Ballard, who led the Warriors to the most wins - ever - in program history last season with 24. "Now we have ruined any chance at sneaking up on anybody the rest of the year."

Ballard will certainly accept that consequence. The sixth-year WSU coach saw his team, specifically his freshmen, "grow up tremendously" in a game few people thought would be close. Winona State, however, came out strong and finished even stronger. The Warriors led 33-28 at the half, thanks in part to senior Ana Wurtz, who scored 14 of her game-high 20 points in the first half.

WSU's guards were able to penetrate the lane in the first half, then kick the ball out for some good looks at 3-pointers. In the second half when the Gophers closed that part of WSU's game down, the Warriors Marieanna Dulas, Afton Glander, Katie Wolff and Wurtz were able to drive all the way to the basket.

"We really hurt them with our dribble drives," Ballard said. "Dulas, Glander, Wolff, Wurtz, it was a total team effort. Inside, this was a Big Ten team and our post people were able to hold their own in rebounding and stopping them inside."

Minnesota rallied to take a 61-58 lead with just over 2 minutes remaining, but the Warriors - despite their young lineup - didn't crumble. In fact, it was Dulas, a freshman from Markesan, Wis., who hit a shot to bring the Warriors within one point. The Gophers Jackie Voigt hit one of two free throws to make it 62-60 with 58 seconds left, but WSU wasn't about to go away.

Michelle McDonald, a sophomore forward from Johnsburg, Ill., tied the game at 62 with 35 seconds left. After the teams traded possessions, WSU forced the Gophers into a turnover. Dulas took the ball up the court, drove, then dished to an open Gigler for the game-winner. Gigler finished with 10 points on 5-for-8 shooting.

"Our kids, they understood what we were trying to do," Ballard said. "We got really aggressive with we were supposed to do, and went out and did it. We played with a basketball IQ and a physical presence that was well beyond our years."

Dulas added eight points for WSU, while McDonald finished with seven. Kiara Buford led the Gophers with 18 points.