Photo by Meghan White

Written By: Ryan Baker, Journalist

In a surprising offensive showcase, the Minnesota Wind Chill extended their unbeaten start to 4-0 with a 23-20 win over the Madison Radicals, as both teams—normally known for defense—shifted their usual script this past Sunday night.

Minnesota traveled to their “second home,” Breese Stevens Field, for the first edition of the Border Battle and continued their success there. With this win, they have now taken 10 straight from the Radicals and are 7-1 in Madison since 2020.

The main storylines were Minnesota's collective offensive performance and the impact of their college stars in their 2026 debuts.

The Wind Chill achieved an 86 percent hold percentage, successfully completing 19 out of 22 offensive points. This is the third-highest hold percentage they have achieved against any team other than the Mechanix in franchise history. Additionally, they recorded just eight turnovers, their second-fewest ever in a game.

Usually, the Border Battle features more forced turnovers and blocks, but this matchup saw only 11 total blocks—the fewest ever in these games.

“It was a tough game, a play or two different, and we have a different outcome,” Head Coach Ben Feldman said. “Madison's a good team. This was the cleanest game we've ever played in a long time, regardless of the opponent.”

Minnesota was perfect in the red zone, converting on every attempt. This 100 percent red zone conversion rate is only the second time they've achieved perfection in this stat since it began being tracked. They also posted the fourth-highest offensive line conversion rate in team history in this game.

“They just didn't give the ball away,” Feldman stated. “They have a lot of guys who can throw and go and are pretty consistent with it, and are tough on defense. We’re going to have to play well against these guys to keep beating them. They got a really good team and it was a really good test for us.”

The college stars’ impact was immediate. Nathan De Morgan and Thomas Shope, both making their 2026 debuts after wrapping up their college seasons, contributed right away. De Morgan, playing on offense, recorded five assists, four goals (tied for most on Minnesota), and over 420 yards. Meanwhile, Shope, despite playing defense in an offense-heavy game, managed a goal and a pivotal block that secured Minnesota’s first break.

“It's a nice change of pace from college, but it's great to get out here with the fellas, and I felt like I was fitting in pretty good,” De Morgan said. “I was just trying to go out there and build some chemistry, have fun, and play well. Very pleasantly surprised with the on-field play, but we'll keep working and keep getting better.”

“For sure,” Feldman responded when asked if he expected De Morgan to have such an immediate impact. “His throws open up so much space. Shope played fantastic. All the stats were on offense, but he got that really big block in the first half, which was huge. Both of them played tremendous and are going to be big pieces for us down the stretch.”

The first quarter brought a near-perfect showing for both squads. The only two blemishes were a Kristian Johnson turnover and an odd mistake from Madison on the same point, where the player assumed he was in the end zone, was called out by the refs, but spiked the disc in excitement. That allowed for Minnesota to cap off the dirty hold, which gave De Morgan his first goal of the night.

“The other players on the O-line are super talented, making great spaces to cut into, making great cuts to throw to. I'm confident in my throwing ability, but my teammates set me up really well for success,” said De Morgan.

Heading into the second quarter, Minnesota led 7-6 as the scoring pace slowed. Following two breaks by Minnesota and one by Madison, the Wind Chill maintained their two-point advantage. A 70-yard huck from Lukas Ambrose to Max Hanscom with 36 seconds left in the half gave the visitors momentum going into halftime.

The third quarter mirrored the first in scoring output, though it offered more excitement. Minnesota’s offense advanced past midfield almost immediately on each possession. Of their seven third-quarter points (including one break), six took under 47 seconds to score. Notably, Will Brandt caught two deep goals from Gordon Larson, who also tallied two more assists and a goal in the third quarter alone.

Larson finished the game with six assists, two goals, and more than 580 total yards gained. Brandt concluded the night with four goals, three assists, and 553 total yards, completing all 41 of his passes and contributing to one of the most efficient offensive performances in team history.

“I felt like that was the best our O-line has played in a long, long time,” Larson stated. “It just feels good to come out against Madison and put together an overall performance like that.”

Minnesota began the fourth quarter up by three and followed with a break that lasted over two minutes—the decisive blow. With a 4-0 start, Minnesota now stands among the league’s four unbeaten teams.

They will have to keep the clean play going as they quickly gear up to host the Indianapolis AlleyCats, who will look very different from the first time these two teams played.

“The first couple of wins were against slightly underpowered opponents,” Larson said. “They were missing guys, so to beat this really solid Madison team is a good win and a good challenge that we needed. Indy is going to be a lot better next week. Every game's going to get harder, and we saw that with this game.”