SDSU wrestlers fall at No. 12 Minnesota

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MINNEAPOLIS – South Dakota State opened an early lead, but 12th-ranked Minnesota came storming back to claim a 27-13 victory in a college wrestling dual Sunday afternoon at the Maturi Pavilion.

Both teams ended the day with 1-1 overall dual records. The win by the Golden Gophers was their 1,000th dual victory in program history.

The Jackrabbits got out of the gates quickly by winning a pair of matchups between nationally ranked wrestlers. With the dual starting at 165 pounds, 17th-ranked Tanner Cook of SDSU and No. 20 Andrew Sparks traded takedowns and near-falls in a high-scoring opening period that ended with Sparks leading 11-7. Cook regained control in the second period, recording a pin midway through the stanza.

All six of Cook’s wins so far this season have been by fall.

Cade DeVos, ranked 17th at 174 pounds, pushed the SDSU lead to 9-0 with a 6-1 decision over No. 21 Jared Krattiger. After a scoreless first period, DeVos tallied takedowns in each of the final two periods and added points via escape and riding time to improve to 5-0 on the season.

Minnesota reeled off wins in each of the next five matches to build an insurmountable 20-9 lead. Isaiah Salazar started the string with a 10-1 major decision over Jacob Schoon at 184 pounds, followed by Michial Foy’s 9-3 decision over the Jackrabbits’ sixth-ranked Tanner Sloan in Sloan’s season debut in the 197-pound matchup.

Each of the next three Golden Gopher victories were of the bonus-point variety: a technical fall by defending NCAA and Olympic champion Gable Steveson at heavyweight and major decisions from Patrick McKee (125) and Jake Gliva (133).

Returning All-American and seventh-ranked Clay Carlson ended the streak with a convincing 12-3 major decision for SDSU over 23rd-ranked Jake Bergeland in the 141-pound matchup.

Two more ranked wrestlers for Minnesota, Michael Blockhus (149) and Brayton Lee (157), closed the dual with victories to give the Golden Gophers wins in seven of the 10 bouts.

NO. 12 MINNESOTA 27, SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 12

165: #17 Tanner Cook (SDSU) def. #20 Andrew Sparks, by fall 3:52

174: #17 Cade DeVos (SDSU) dec. #21 Jared Krattiger, 6-1

184: Isaiah Salazar (MINN) major dec. Jacob Schoon, 10-1

197: Michial Foy (MINN) dec. #6 Tanner Sloan, 9-3

285: #1 Gable Steveson (MINN) tech. fall #19 A.J. Nevills, 21-6 (5:00)

125: #9 Patrick McKee (MINN) major dec. #23 Tanner Jordan, 13-1

133: Jake Gliva (MINN) major dec. Trayton Anderson, 10-2

141: #7 Clay Carlson (MINN) major dec. #23 Jake Bergeland, 12-3

149: #22 Michael Blockhus (MINN) dec. #29 Zach Price, 13-7

157: #5 Brayton Lee (MINN) major dec. Kenny O’Neil, 13-5

HAROLD NICHOLS CYCLONE OPEN

AMES, Iowa – In other action Sunday, four Jackrabbit wrestlers won individual titles in the Freshman-Sophomore Division of the Harold Nichols Cyclone Open at Hilton Coliseum.

Newcomers Derrick Cardinal (133 pounds), Alek Martin (149), Connor Gaynor (165) and Roman Rogotzke (184) were victorious in their respective weight classes, while 157-pounder Cael Swensen and 197-pounder Cody Donnelly also reached the finals.

Cardinal, a native of Forest Lake, Minnesota, outscored his three opponents by a 28-5 margin. After opening with a 4-2 decision over Sam Hrabovsky of Iowa State, Cardinal posted 16-3 and 8-0 major decisions over Sammy Lile (unattached) and Aidan Harris (Iowa Central).

Martin, from St. Paris, Ohio, also turned in a 3-0 record on the day, winning his 149-pound title in a round-robin competition. He recorded a pair of first-period falls and added a 16-7 major decision over Iowa Central’s Darnai Heard.

A freshman from Mokena, Illinois, Gaynor went 2-0 in round-robin competition at 165 pounds, posting a 12-0 major decision against Cody Anderson (unattached) and notching a first-period fall against Kody Cook of Iowa Central.

Rogotzke, who was making his collegiate debut, won each of his first three matches by fall before outlasting Cody Fisher of Iowa State, 13-9, in the championship bout.

In reaching the 157-pound finals, Swensen began the day with a 7-4 decision over Wisconsin’s Cale Anderson, followed by a 10-1 major decision over Andrew Huddleston of Iowa State. In the championship, Swensen dropped a 4-2 decision to R.J. Weston of Northern Iowa.

Donnelly advanced to the 197-pound championship bout after respective 3-0 and 16-0 victories over John Gunderson (Northern Iowa) and Trevion Sample (Iowa Central). A freshman from Philip, Donnelly dropped a 6-2 decision to UNI’s Adam Ahrendsen in the finals.

Teammate Hunter McCall placed fourth at 197 pounds.

Adding third-place finishes for the Jackrabbits in the Freshman-Sophomore Division were 125-pounder Bailey Roybal and 184-pounder Sam Kruger.

In the Open Division, junior heavyweight Bowen McConville led SDSU with a third-place finish. Caleb Gross (133 pounds) and Jack Thomsen (157) each turned in fourth-place efforts.

UP NEXT

Jackrabbit starters are slated to compete Dec. 3-4 at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Another group of SDSU wrestlers is set to compete Dec. 4 at the Doane Conner/Oppenheim Open in Crete, Nebraska.