The No. 3 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater football team earned a hard-fought 28-20 victory at NAIA foe St. Xavier in a non-conference contest in Chicago, Ill.

The Warhawk (3-0 overall) closed out the non-conference season by holding the Cougars (1-1) to 3-of-15 on third-down coversions and posting 14 points off St. Xavier’s turnovers.

Sophomore quarterback Max Meylor passed 16-for-26 for 204 yards and two touchdowns. Junior linebacker Kaleb Kaminski led the defense with 17 takles.

After a field goal by the Cougars, senior running back Ronny Ponick capped a drive with a 1-yard touchdown to give UW-Whitewater a 7-3 advantage with 10:18 to play in the second quarter.

St. Xavier scored the next 10 points before the Warhawks responded with another rushing touchdown as junior running back Alex Peete plunged in from one yard out to make it 14-13 with 43 seconds left in the first half.

The Cougars took their last lead before UW-Whitewater took the lead for good on a 34-yard pass from Meylor to sophomore wide receiver Sam DeLany late in the third quarter.

The Warhawks tacked on seven more points when Meylor hit junior wide receiver Derek Kumerow for a 19-yard score with 25 seconds on the clock.

UW-Whitewater opens Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Oct. 5 against UW-Eau Claire. Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m. at Perkins Stadium.