CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – No. 1 Nebraska-Omaha edged out a 17-15 victory over No. 3 Augustana in the championship of the NWCA National Duals Sunday afternoon at the Northern Iowa Dome in Cedar Falls, Iowa.
The loss for the Vikings came on the heels of an 18-15 win over No. 2 St. Cloud State earlier in the day.
Augustana moves to 5-1.
Augustana rattled off win in the dual’s opening two matches as Al Meger took down Cody Tyler 11-6 at 125 pounds and 133-pounder Jason Jeremiason was a 2-0 winner over Sim Bribieseca.
In a rematch of last year’s national title match at 141 pounds, Augustana’s Jay Sherer came up short against Mario Morgan, falling 4-2 and allowing the Mavericks to open scoring.
Nate Herda pushed the Viking lead to 9-3 with a 7-3 win over No. 1- ranked Esai Dominguez at 149 pounds.
Marcus Edgington nearly picked up another Augustana victory at 157 pounds, but George Ivanov managed an 8-6 win for UNO.
Gavin Nelson followed with a 2-0 win over the Mavericks’ Nathan Sigman at 165 pounds to move the Augustana advantage to 12-6.
Major decision wins at 174 and 184 pounds by UNO in the subsequent matches gave the Mavericks a 14-12 lead.
The Vikings regained their lead after Ty Copsey topped Matt Baker 3-2 at 197 pounds.
Taylor Escamilla came up big for the Mavericks in the heavweight bout, sneaking out a 3-1 win over Lance Peters for the decisive lead change.
It was the third straight NWCA National Duals title for UNO, which is also the defending national champion.
The title tilt was the result of Augustana defeating SCSU in the semifinals earlier in the day.
The Vikings weren’t fancy in knocking off the Huskies, but their five wins by decision were enough to push them past the second-ranked squad in the nation.
Meger (125 pounds), Jeremiason (133 pounds), Sherer (141 pounds), Edgington (157 pounds) and Carl Serck (174 pounds) all notched wins.
Augustana will open Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference dual action on Saturday when the Vikings host Minnesota State Moorhead at 7 p.m.
Augustana 18, St. Cloud State 15
125: Alex Meger (Augustana) DEC Zach Stewart (St. Cloud State), 8 – 4
133: Jason Jeremiason (Augustana) DEC Eric Ellington (St. Cloud State), 3 – 1
141: Jay Sherer (Augustana) DEC Gabriel Suarez (St. Cloud State), 6 – 4
149: Jacob D. Horn (St. Cloud State ) DEC Nate Herda (Augustana), 7 – 5
157: Marcus Edgington (Augustana) DEC John Sundgren (St. Cloud State), 4 – 1
165: Tad Merritt (St. Cloud Stat ) FALL Gavin Nelson (Augustana), 3:30
174: Carl Serck (Augustana) DEC Shamus O’Grady (St. Cloud State), 6 – 4
184: Michael Berg (St. Cloud State) DEC Thomas Davies (Augustana), 9 – 3
197: Tyler Copsey (Augustana) RT, TB Lucas Munkelwitz (St. Cloud State), 2 – 2
285: Jake Kahnke (St. Cloud State) DEC Lance Peters (Augustana), 5 – 3
Nebraska-Omaha 17, Augustana 15
125: Alex Meger (Augustana) DEC Cody Tyler (Nebraska-Omaha), 11 – 6
133: Jason Jeremiason (Augustana) DEC Yasiim Bribieseca (Nebraska-Omaha), 2 – 0
141: Mario Morgan (Nebraska-Omaha) DEC Jay Sherer (Augustana), 4 – 2
149: Nate Herda (Augustana) DEC Esai Dominguez (Nebraska-Omaha), 7 – 3
157: George Ivanov (Nebraska-Omaha) DEC Marcus Edgington (Augustana), 8 – 6
165: Gavin Nelson (Augustana) DEC Nathan Sigman (Nebraska-Omaha), 2 – 0
174: Ryan Pankoke (Nebraska-Omaha) MD Carl Serck (Augustana), 11 – 1
184: Aaron Denson (Nebraska-Omaha) MD Matt Morris (Augustana), 16 – 3
197: Tyler Copsey (Augustana) DEC Matt Baker (Nebraska-Omaha), 3 – 2
285: Taylor Escamilla (Nebraska-Omaha) DEC Lance Peters (Augustana), 3 – 1